Draconic Fate
by The wiErDos Association
Summary: With no memory of his past, Emiya Natsu was taken in by Kiritsugu after the incident that occurred 10 years ago. Living his own life as a normal boy, he now soon stumbles upon a fated meeting that will soon turn his life upside down as he begins to face different enemies and allies fighting for the sake of their own different wishes. (AU)
1. Seventh Master

**A/N: Hello guys. wiErD here. Just got the idea of crossing some stories of my two favorite animes. This is a bit weird in my case too but who knows, I want to try it as soon as possible. This is will an AU where Natsu was the one picked up by Emiya Kiritsugu in the town of flames with no memory of where he came from. So there will be no Emiya Shirou. I apologize in advance if there are people who wanted him to be in this fic but I'm afraid that he won't be.**

 **Be reminded that Natsu will be a little OOC in this fic and his powers will be changed accordingly but will retain his own prominent power which is his dragonslayer magic. However, I'll try to bring back some of his personality just keep the original Natsu.**

 **So let's get it on already with story. :)**

 **Disclaimer: I would never own Fairy Tail and Fate/Stay Night and their characters. All goes to their respective owners.**

* * *

 **\- Seventh Master -**

* * *

 _A sea of flames. Stretching far as my eyes could see._

 _Everything was torn._

 _The sound of screams and helpless despair rang into my ears like an eternity._

 _I ran without looking back._

 _I wanted to get away as far as possible._

 _._

 _._

.

 _As I ran, several people are wanting my help but-_

 _It was too late._

 _There is no way to save them all even the children like me._

 _It hurts._

 _The atmosphere was killing me like it was suffocating me from the inside._

 _._

 _._

 _._

 _I have no memories as I don't know much of why I came here_ ―

 _In this sad and dreadful place._

 _Is it because I was meant to be here... to suffer?_

 _What did I do wrong? Why do I have to suffer like this?_

 _Please, end this misery._

 _._

 _._

 _._

 _I can't take it anymore._

 _Every step was a burden to me as I keep walking past many people who needed help the most._

 _Yet, I didn't do anything._

 _I watch them burn and die in front of me._

 _Yet, I still live._

 _I do not feel any heat burning through my skin as if I was able to tolerate it._

 _._

 _._

 _._

 _My body feels cold despite the flames around me._

 _I can't move any longer._

 _My strength has already disappeared, having no more will to live on._

 _Will I ever be out of this hell?_

 _Is there someone who can save me?_

 _I don't wanna die._

 _._

 _._

 _Please... someone._

* * *

A sudden jolt transpired in his eyes as Natsu suddenly woke up from his sleep. His gaze went through the unfamiliar ceiling as his body laid upfront facing it. Images of his recent dream flooded his mind with such terror, indicating a horrible nightmare. He felt his senses sharpen not out of caution but rather of fear. These memories etched deep in his mind that he couldn't help but recall it from time to time.

After a moment, his body rested calmly.

His visions started to return back to the real world as he weakly rubbed his eyes to shake off the drowsiness in his body. Unmoving, he lifted up an arm and nestled it above his forehead.

 _'Another dream huh...'_ His thoughts soon reverted back to the twisted dream he recently had in his sleep.

Why did it have to come back to him again at this time?

It's been ten years since then yet, he still remembered it very clearly. Every scene he had witnessed at that time was very clear in his mind. The sight of death and destruction around him.

It was rather a painful sight to see.

He sat up straight and made a stretch. He felt his body loosen up the fatigue as he was able to move his body around with no problems.

He looked over to his surroundings and realized that he slept in the same place again. A small cramped space surrounded him with tools and other things stored up on numerous shelves and corners for later use. Other objects were seen stored up in boxes with some placed above them. Beside him were a set of tools that he picked from last night as he soon remembered the reason for being here in the first place.

He then slowly stood up and gave a further stretch unto his body before moving towards the sliding door. As he opened it, a little cold breeze soon swept inside like a river flowing instantly as it touched his skin and swayed his pink hair locks. Natsu could feel the presence of an early morning right before his eyes. His vision was directed towards a small courtyard with walls erected all over. A medium-sized section of the house can be seen from the right, leading to the main structure attached beside it.

Further into the distance was the sun beginning its own shine as it slowly rose up from the distant mountains. The light soared through the darkened skies as several thin clouds blew overhead. The sound of birds chirping at the early phase of the day rang in his ears, erasing the silence that once took over the night.

It was a usual good morning.

Apparently, he found himself in a storeroom of the other section of the house. It was a rather isolated place apart from the main building located beside it as it was built in separation for that one sole purpose.

It was used for storage for keeping some items for intended use at a later time. It was also the place where he mostly spends his time alone, doing some of his own things. It has become a rather commonplace for him to wander through here other than the main house itself.

As years go by, it eventually became one of his hobbies to secretly reside in the storeroom rather than the house itself.

"Yosh..."

He smiled in content as he looked over to the brightened skies and simply gave a fist-pump in the air. His face filled with energy and vigor as he appreciates the start of a new day. Turning his attention towards the familiar contraption he'd been working on, he dusted off his dirtied clothes and smiled at the day ahead of him.

However, despite all these wonderful things, his mind reverted back again to the time where he had begun to live in this world.

...

Ten years ago, there was a huge fire that destroyed everything. No one sure knows of the source of the fire but it all happened in an instant as the flames ravaged throughout the neighborhood of Shinto and burned everything, including humans.

It was hell.

Although the fire didn't destroy the town, the destruction it caused came down as one of the most tragic accidents that are still remembered by many.

Natsu was the only one who survived the ordeal, along with a few survivors after that incident. However, unlike most of them, he had no memories of his life except his name as if his mind was wiped clean. He doesn't know where he came from or who his parents are.

His life supposedly began after waking up in the burning town.

It was a very enigmatic experience as no one knows who he is or had any relations with him at all. All he ever knew was his name and nothing more. Despite all that, he too fell victim of the disaster and was on the verge of death if not for a certain person who miraculously found him and took him in as his adopted son.

The man whom he would later call as his father, Emiya Kiritsugu, saved him from that hell and took him in. It was also at that time he felt grateful for saving him from the fire. However, in the later years, he also passed away to which many had caused grief to the ones who knew him dearly, including him.

To him, Kiritsugu was more of a savior than a father. Taking an estranged kid like him was nothing like a simple act of helping him out of pity. It was more of a choice that wanted to save him as to fulfill something he wanted to yearn for a long time. At that time, he didn't know what his intentions are behind those tears when he finally saw him alive and breathing as he was little child back then with no memories.

In the end, he would later be adopted by him and taught him a lot of things. He didn't even mind how eccentric his situation came to be and decided to take him in as his son.

Natsu was able to recover thanks to him and was grateful to have such a father like him despite his almost lifeless expression. Not knowing what causes behind that usually expressionless face, he would always try things to cheer him up in the silliest ways possible.

Well... that was until when he, unfortunately, died a few years back.

Ever since then, he started to live his own life in solitude as he was the only family member of the Emiya. As a result, he inherited everything that his foster father had owned as he was the apparent heir of the family name itself, despite his adopted lineage. Right now, he lived his life peacefully alongside with a few people he had come to know.

...

The pinkette soon looked over to his own work laid on a mat where he slept unknowingly, only to find that it was still left unfinished. He was supposed to fix the machine from the living room since it's been acting up quite weirdly in the past few days. He must've slept the whole night trying to fix it without knowing. He placed his hand on his head and could only sigh in disbelief.

"I might get scolded for this..."

He sat back on his mat and picked some tools to attach the lid of the appliance in order to have it fixed right away. His clothes were already drenched in dirt and the grease from the tools last night covered most of it.

 _'Might have to take some bath after this.'_ Is what he thought.

"Natsu-senpai?"

A feminine voice soon resounded from the door as Natsu turned around, only to see a purple-haired girl coming into view with a smile written on her face. Her shadow loomed over his figure, blocking the light of the sun from the outside. A sweet lavender scent permeated from her figure as he flashed a smile back in response.

"Hey! Sakura... What are you doing out here? It's still too early to come here and make food, you know."

His fatigue finally washed away just in time to greet her with spirit.

"I-It's not a problem at all, Natsu-senpai... I-I just wanted to help you out here to lessen your burdens. How are you doing here?" She squeaked as her words came only in a stutter to which Natsu had grown quite used to over time he spent with her. The girl isn't exactly a straightforward person which further proved on her constant shyness that resulted from much to her sentences in a form of a stutter whenever she talks to other people.

Kinda like a trait that he sometimes sees as cute.

"Aaaah, I'm just about to finish this thing. I overslept last night."

"Oh, it's quite unusual for you to oversleep just now, senpai." Sakura could only gape upon observing his current situation.

"I'd appreciate it if you would just call me Natsu by now... Senpai is just a bit... formal. Aren't we already friends?" He reminded, recalling how many times he would hear her call him in such a reserved manner. Even though they're not strangers to each other, he still finds it confusing why she would still refer him as such.

"I'm sorry, senpa-No, I mean. Natsu-senpai.. N-No, it's not that." Sakura stuttered once again, unable to remove her formality towards him so easily. However, the pinkette simply chuckled and reached out a pat on her head much to her surprise.

"Hehe, don't worry. You'll get used to it."

He could see her face flush red for some reason as soon as he said those words. Moreover, his hand on her head prompted her to lower head as to avoid his strong gaze for some reason.

"A-Anyway, Fujimura-sensei will be coming here soon so I think you should change your clothes before she comes."

"Ah, that's right... Fuji-nee would really kill me if she found me like this." Natsu slightly panicked as he looked over to his dirtied clothes. Finally letting go of his hand, he withdrew some distance and started sorting his tools back.

"Please take your time in finishing up... There's still a lot of time for you to finish it. I can take care of the breakfast for you, senpai." Sakura beamed to which made him smile at her.

"Thanks, Sakura. You always help out at the best of times... I'll be spared from her wrath for this day."

"It's better if you don't mention it in front of Fujimura-sensei..." She sweatdropped despite his joke about the fiery teacher.

"I'll take that in mind..."

...

As soon as Sakura went back to the house, Natsu soon turned back to unfinished task and began to work on it as he picked up his tools to fix the broken section of it. With the purple haired girl out of sight, it didn't take a couple of minutes for him to finish as he finally managed to get it working once again. He wiped off a small bead of sweat from his forehead, having to accomplish it in time.

After putting all the tools back, he soon went back to the house and changed into his own clothes as well. He placed his dirty ones into a washing machine until a voice soon reverberated through the walls to which he simply recognized the person yelling at the other side.

Sliding the door to his right, he found another person other than Sakura inside the living room.

Taigi Fujimura, a relative of his late foster father in which he usually calls Fuji-nee. She's a teacher from his school and probably the only family relative that he had other than Kiritsugu since he was adopted. She's a young woman with short light-brown hair. Her clothes consisted of a green dress with yellow and black striped shirt. A pair of earrings is found on both her ears which added some charm to it, accompanied with her usual bombastic attitude.

"Good morning! Natsu-kun! Still lively as always." Taiga goofed around the table as she was in high spirits.

"Morning, Fuji-nee..." Came a lazy reply from the pinkette.

"Eh? No other remarks? I should've lowered your grades for saying just like that, Natsu."

"That's against the rules... What else would I say other than that? Moreover, it's illegal for teachers to change her student's grade just because of a nonsensical thing." He retorted back as he began to move over across her and sat peacefully without even caring about what is in front of him.

"Now, now... We're all here now so let's just stop and eat, okay?" Sakura came pleading with a sincere smile before sitting down next to Taiga to enjoy the breakfast. The two agreed, not wanting to interrupt their early breakfast with their bickering.

"Sorry... was hungry anyways..." Natsu obeyed, finally taking a seat of his own and began eating as well.

"You seem quite out of it, Natsu-kun... Did something happen?" Taiga asked, seeing his not-so-bright behavior for the first time. Normally, he would be screaming and shouting together with her as if they were really under a heated argument. It's been like that between them since then and the two always wasted their energy at each other arguing like siblings. Seeing his somewhat bored expression made it quite strange for her at least.

"Sorry, just got tired from all the work from last night."

"Now that's even more strange... You always never had the knack of getting tired since you were always full of energy."

"Well, I'm not certainly superhuman so it's natural for me to get tired too, you know." Natsu huffed before swallowing his food at the midst of their conversation.

"I think that's a good thing." Sakura butted in.

"How so?" Taiga asked curiously.

"Natsu-senpai must learn to take breaks once in awhile... I know you've been helping out many people but you should also help yourself."

"Hmm? Really?" He asked curiously.

"A-Ah, I don't mean it in a bad way. What I meant was Natsu-senpai should take a break every once in a while..."

"Now that you think about it, I guess you should do it Natsu-kun. Your body isn't that built to do errands nonstop." The teacher asked with a realization all over her face.

"It's okay, Fuji-nee. I got used to it. Plus, Sakura is always here to help out with the chores so it'll be fine... It'll be alright if I take a short rest or two..." He shook his head, happy to hear about his well-being. "Though I'd appreciate it if you also helped instead of laying around the house for no reason." He then scowled towards the beaming teacher.

"Tee-hee~" She returned with a teasing smirk.

"Don't even think about it." He sighed before finally standing up to gather the plates and went towards the kitchen sink to wash it.

As soon as they were finished with their breakfast, Natsu and Sakura began cleaning the dishes while Taiga waits around the table, observing the two in silence. Having nothing to do, she waits at the table while reading some newspaper to pass time. The sounds of water flushing out from the faucet were the only thing that can be heard in the room until Taiga decided to open the TV for any interesting news.

A channel soon popped up, revealing another news concerning about issues throughout Fuyuki City.

"Another gas leak again, huh?" Natsu asked, having to have heard of the news being watched by Taiga.

"It seems like that... They're pretty quite often around these days. I wonder what's happened." She frowned as she listens further to the TV.

"Did they find anything? I mean, like the source of the leak itself?"

"Unfortunately, no. This is probably the 6th time that an accident like that happened within a month. I wonder if the school notices it."

"Well, if they do notice, I think they would be giving some rules to let the students go home early and forbid them from wandering around at night." Sakura joined in the conversation.

"What a troublesome problem this is..." Taiga pondered to herself, placing her hand on her chin.

She looked towards the clock and simply widen her eyes in realization that it was already getting late.

"Oh crap! I think I need to get going!" She stood up from her seat, panicking before running towards the exit with Natsu and Sakura following her.

As the two went outside, they saw her in her full gear while riding on a small motorcycle.

"Have a safe trip, Fuji-nee. Don't drive recklessly." Natsu gave a not-so-reassuring farewell.

"Like that will make me happy."

"Safe travels, Fujimura-sensei.." Sakura bowed down politely as Taiga soon smiled towards her.

"Well, I got to go. See you guys at school. And don't be late, okay?" She replied back as she put up the throttle and dashed away in a matter of seconds from the residence, leaving both Natsu and Sakura behind to tend some things before heading off as well.

"Isn't it about time we head out also, Natsu-senpai?" The purple haired girl soon turned towards him.

"Sure, I'll just dress up so wait for me outside," Natsu replied with a warm smile before returning inside the house to change his clothes.

He hurried back towards his room and took out his school uniform to dress himself up for the day. It only took a few minutes for him to finally get himself changed and simply folded his previous clothes before placing it on a desk in preparation to wear it for later. His eyes momentarily turned over to a small picture frame of his late foster father located in a small desk before smiling inwardly to himself as he heads out of the house.

Just as he was about to depart, he realized that something was still missing. He looked over to his own bed and saw his white scarf laid upon it. He quickly ran towards it and grabbed it before wrapping it over to himself to warm himself.

Apart from the usual designs of the scarves, his scarf was mainly designed with a scale-like pattern. It was also the thing that he had left during the incident ten years ago.

He didn't know why but for some reason, he had the urge to at least keep it, feeling some kind of attachment to his forgotten past. Maybe it was a present from his previous parents or some sort of memento that he must've earned in his past life. Even so, he still doesn't remember anything aside from the fire from ten years ago. He wouldn't want to dwell too much on it as it was already in the past.

He set aside his thoughts about it and simply smiled before closing the door and went on together with Sakura towards their school.

...

The two walked together as they trudged along the sidewalks, leading to their school. The morning continued its course throughout the day as the warm light shone down on the city itself, letting the inhabitants to bath in its warmth. Several people also began walking towards their usual destinations to start their morning as well.

"So, is Shinji doing well these days?" Natsu soon asked the purple-haired girl to which she jolted into attention.

"A-Ah, yes... He's fine, I think." Sakura replied with a stutter.

"Is that so? I guess it's fine then... As long as there are no problems in the club without me there then I'll be content."

"You still don't want to rejoin back at the club?" Natsu could only give a slight nod of disapproval from her.

"Iya, I don't wanna cause any more trouble for them so it's best to leave at that."

"But it isn't your fault or anything. I'm sure everyone would be happy to accept you again if you join again." She reassured but Natsu shook his head sideways.

"There's no need for that. I'll be okay on my own. Plus, I'd like to have a bit of a time for myself alone for awhile, you know." He said.

"I-I see..." Her face hung low in sadness after hearing his response. It wasn't her fault for making him decline.

She knew quite well that Natsu had the tendency to distance himself from the others as he had little contact with many people aside from her, Taiga and Issei from the student council. It almost looked like he was isolated from the rest of the people in their school since he had no friends to talk with. The people he interacted with were nothing short of acquaintances. Although he helps out other people, he never really interacted with them as he served his work as an excuse to relieve himself.

She didn't know how he began to live like that but she knew Natsu has been all by himself. And she couldn't help but reach out because he looked so lonely.

Moreover, because of his withdrawn connection with other people, many had raised some bad rumors about him. Mostly referring him as a delinquent due to his unnatural pink hair and somewhat intimidating appearance.

Even so, she never really viewed him so lowly as much as everyone actually says about him. That's why she was able to walk beside him like this.

In truth, Natsu was a good and kindhearted person who puts everyone ahead before him. He always takes good care of his friends and would not hesitate to lend a hand when they're troubled by something. If they could only get to know him better rather than judging him, they might've viewed him differently and befriend him along the way.

Knowing that, she didn't want push too much on the subject at hand so Sakura tried to end it in respect for him.

"If you have any problems, please don't hesitate to ask okay, senpai?" Sakura offered.

"Thanks, Sakura. You're a lifesaver."

"No problem..."

...

"Sakura!"

As she was about to take a step ahead of him, Natsu suddenly forced her back as he held her back just in time before looking to his side. At the same time, multiple police cars ran pass through them in a matter of seconds with sirens blaring loudly as if they were in an emergency. Natsu observed them for a moment until they finally disappeared into the distance before looking back at the shocked girl.

"You must at least, watch where you're going. You could've seriously injured yourself if I didn't realize it a bit sooner." Natsu spoke. A worried tone evident in his voice.

Sakura was left dumbfounded of what happened. She was literally saved by him from the cars just now. If he hadn't been more vigilant around her then she would've bumped herself into one of those cars and severely injured herself. On the other hand, she blushed as soon as she saw his arm held tight around her waist.

"T-Thank you, senpai... And, will y-you let me go now?" She weakly replied due to her embarrassment but Natsu heard it nonetheless as he seemingly let go of her and waited for her to recompose herself.

"Well, then shall we keep going? We're gonna be late, you know." He reminded before moving on ahead before her.

"Uh, Natsu-senpai?" She called out, prompting him to turn around in confusion.

"Hmm?"

"T-Thank you again..." She meekly replied.

"That's your second time thanking me for the same thing... Don't worry about it. I managed to hear them from afar." His last statement made her head tilt in confusion just now.

What does he mean by that?

She quickly set aside that thought for now as Natsu soon walked ahead of her to which she followed him afterward.

...

They arrived at school just in time as the bell rang from the top. Students from different classes walked inside the main gate and into their own respective rooms to start their lessons for the day. Natsu and Sakura entered the entrance as they stood in the locker section where most of the students collect their belongings for their starting classes.

"Then, I'll be going on ahead, Natsu-senpai." Sakura spoke with a warm smile.

"Yeah, I'll see you around, Sakura."

Both beamed with a smile and in just like that, she bowed her head and turned towards the opposite direction, leaving Natsu behind the lockers as she disappeared to a corner. Natsu smiled as he returned to his own matters and began his walk towards his room. Arriving just in time, he opened the doors and saw some of his classmates sitting onto their respective seats while others standing around talking to their peers. He scooted his way onto his seat which was located at the far end of the classroom and decided to wait for their homeroom teacher to arrive.

He placed down his bag at his side and simply fixed his scarf to bury his face in the process. He rested on the desk, facing the window beside him. He gazed solemnly at the mountains seen from the far horizon where the sun had shone earlier and could not help but feel sleepy once again.

If he ever dreamed that dream again, he might as well just stay awake for the whole day. He had enough of the dream back at the shed and he wouldn't want to see it all ever again.

...

The door suddenly slammed open as Fujimura Taiga bursts right in with a big and lively attitude. The sudden outburst caused some of the students to look up in surprise as she made her entrance.

"GOOD MORNING, STUDENTS! YOU'RE FAVORITE HOMEROOM TEACHER, FUJIMURA TAIGA IS HERE!" She shouted merrily to which many would only groan in disbelief just from witnessing her wild behavior including Natsu as well.

"Just as the name states, you really carry the blood of a real wild tiger, Fujimura-sensei." Gotou, one of the students stated that caused Taiga's face to contort into a big and scary expression as she pinched out the life of his cheeks, much to his pain.

"I'm not a tiger!" She retorted though most of them were unconvinced due to her expression.

It's becoming more like a gag really for most of the students in the school. It's an everyday occurrence in this type of class.

As soon as she settled down, she began to return to her usual behavior and began her reminder for the day.

"Anyhow, I wanted to remind you all that the school curfew will be only at 6 p.m. so I advise students to return to their homes as soon as possible alright?"

"What hell was that suppose to mean? 6 p.m. is still too early, Tiger-sensei..." Gotou, who now has a pair of red bulges on his cheeks stood up in objection to the afterschool rules. Though unaware of him, Taiga soon lashes out to him proceeded with an arm lock against him.

"I TOLD YOU ALREADY THAT I'M NOT A TIGER! CALL ME FUJIMURA SENSEI!"

Gotou's pained screams put to a starting remark of their new school life.

Natsu could only smile at the sight as he looked again towards the window and gaze upon the scenery outside to calm himself. At the course of school time, he silently watched at every lecture he encountered from his different subjects and could not help but feel sleepy as the time progresses.

Eventually, lunch time soon came and the students were already out in the cafeteria to buy their food. Others remain for some other reasons and Natsu simply stood up and carried his own homemade lunch towards the student council room where Issei usually stays at in free times.

He slid the door open to the room and found his friend observing at the appliance that was laid at the center of the table. Issei was an average teenager with purple hair reaching only above his shoulders. He seems to wear a pair of glasses as he was examining the appliances before him. He was one of the people that he could really count on in terms of other issues.

It also didn't take long for him to notice Natsu's presence as he simply waved a hand upon his arrival.

"Hey, Natsu. Just the man I was looking for."

"Let me guess, another broken appliance..."

"Hnn..." He nodded back with anticipation.

"I'll finish it later so why don't we eat our lunch first." He laid down his lunch across Issei and simply opened it to help himself.

"That would be best." Issei said with an approving nod as he brought out his own lunch and began to eat alongside with him.

"Your lunch is plain again, Issei..." Natsu remarked upon seeing the contents of his lunch which was the same all over again.

"Don't be bothered by it, Natsu. It's just my father's taste and I quite got accustomed to it. Plus, you know that I live at the temple." The student council president replied before picking out one of Natsu's food from his bento.

"May I?"

"Sure. I don't mind. It's like every single day."

The two simply ate around the table as Natsu peacefully enjoys his own lunch together with Issei without saying much of a word to start a conversation between.

A few minutes passed and Issei decided to speak.

"I forgot to mention this but, do you know about the incident at the second-chome this morning?" Hearing this, Natsu looked to him in curiosity.

"What was that all about?"

"A homicide..." Issei stated, causing him to be quite shocked at the reason behind the emergency.

"...I don't know the specifics, but it was said to be a break-in robbery. Four members of the family were assaulted and killed in the process. The weapon used was oddly long. If I had to guess, it may be a Japanese sword or some sort of a spear-like weapon." He paused before looking back into the tea he was holding as he begins to ponder in thought. "...Gas leak incidents seemed to have happened almost on a daily basis in Shinto and now we have sword-testing killers over here as well."

As he was elaborating the reason of shortening their school curfew, he heard a thudded sound as Natsu immediately stood up from his seat with his hands pressed on the table while accidentally spilling the contents of his food in the process.

Issei turned towards him in confusion but it later turned into worry after seeing his somewhat complicated expression.

"Are you alright, Natsu? You look kinda pale at the moment."

For a moment there, he lost him but Natsu immediately snapped out from his daze and looked at Issei with reassurance.

"I-I'm fine. It's just that it feels uncomfortable hearing such things."

"Sorry for bringing this up to you... I thought you were aware so... A-Anyways, the police are trying their best but they had no clue of the crime scene that could lead them to the killer so it's quite useless to solve anything at the moment. That's why our curfew was shortened just recently in terms guaranteeing the safety of the students."

"I see..."

So that's where the police cars are coming from.

"I know how you feel but there's really nothing we can do about it. Anyway, I think you should start on fixing that thing before lunch break ends, you know." Issei pointed over to the still-broken appliance in front of them which made him realize it.

"Y-Yeah... Sorry about that... I guess I should start fixing it by now." He returned back to his seat and simply gathered the spilled food on the table and cleaned the table after losing his appetite due to the topic earlier.

He stood up from his seat and examined the broken appliance for a few moment.

"This might take awhile for me to finish so why don't you wait outside and I'll have this fixed." He asked the blue-haired student to which he simply nodded and slid the door open and waited outside.

"If you have any problems, just don't hesitate to ask." He offered, causing the pinkette to only smile in return as he soon closed the door to give him some space to do his own work.

To make sure that Issei was already gone, Natsu tried to focus on his senses if there was any noise from the outside that could alarm him whenever someone manages to pass by.

...

Ever since as a kid before he was found by Kiritsugu, he mysteriously inherited some sort of superhuman powers that helped him to enhance his senses to the point that it was no longer in human scale. One example is his hearing senses when he protectively held Sakura back from the police cars running pass through them. It is not only his own hearing sense that is amazingly sharp but also his own sights and sense of smell as well. It may not look like it but he was able to identify different scents of humans around his vicinity.

Despite all of this, it was nothing special since he assumed that it was only an abnormality on his genes though he does not take it too much negatively. Having these unusual traits that differ that of a human being is quite useful in a lot of ways.

Setting his thoughts aside about his innate abilities, Natsu looked at the appliance before him and simply placed a hand towards it and closed his eyes to concentrate. This is also one of his abilities that he inherited from his foster father.

Reinforcement. A basic to all mage crafts.

He can trace the interior of the structure just by concentrating his own focus towards the object. Through there, he can find any damages of a certain mechanism in an easy way, although it's just one of the ways of using it.

The nature of use to this magic is pouring magical energy on an object, enhancing their purpose. Be it a knife or a broken stick, if he wanted to strengthen the durability of an object, he could use this for that purpose.

It's the only thing he learned from his foster father.

Although it might sound strange but in truth, his foster father is not just a normal person. He was a mage; someone who is knowledgeable to the existence of magic that is strictly kept from the general public. To be frank, Natsu thought it was all a tale since he used to tell him that as a kid but at one point, Kiritsugu showed him and it was then it all started. Natsu fascinated the nature of magic and wanted to be taught under his teachings. However, Kiritsugu did only share this type of magic to him and nothing more. Everything else only transpired through his fatherly ways in raising him as a real son.

A sudden realization went over to Natsu as he slowly began to delve away from his thoughts. He returned back to his work and resumed his focus.

It took only for him a few seconds to analyze the entire structure of the appliance and finally opened his eyes to begin his work. He grabbed a tool from his toolbox and began to fix the damaged part.

As soon as he was finished, he finally stood up and returned all the tools back to the box and grabbed his bento before sliding the door open to meet up with Issei who was patiently waiting for him.

"I'm done."

"Good work. I know I can rely on you, Natsu."

"Nah, it's alright. Just call me if there are more problems with the hardware. They can get a bit rough since most of the appliances here are ages old."

"Hnn... If there are no more problems, then we should get back to our classes as well."

Just as they were about to depart to their rooms, Issei instinctively stopped in his tracks as if he saw something horrible right in his own eyes. Unaware of the pink-haired boy, a feminine figure slipped past his sight just before being recalled back by Issei's distressed shout.

"T-Tohsaka Rin!" He stuttered in surprise as a twin-tailed black-haired girl happens to walk pass by them. With two black ribbons strapped in each of her twin tails, her hair was situated to have been tied on two sides. Her inner clothes was that of a Homurahara school uniform but she was accompanied by a long red coat that conceals it from the others.

Rin turned to attention as her name was suddenly blurted out by Issei.

"Oh, the head of the student council is it?" She guessed after taking a brief look upon Issei as if he wasn't seen as important to her.

"Y-You... What business do you have here in this school at such a time? You aren't devising any hideous plans are you?" He stated with a hostility present in his voice.

"You sure are rude... I'm just attending school as usual here." She sweatdropped despite the insult.

"Hmm. Quite suspicious." He shifted his glasses before looking tensely again against her.

"...Your existence is nothing but pure evil in the eyes of school and it is my obligation as the student council president to keep the students out from your malevolent acts."

"You're overdoing it, Issei." Natsu tried to calm him down.

"Quite the remarks there..." She simply mused in response to the statement towards her. Nevertheless, she didn't seem to care about it as she walked pass by them and went on her way, ignoring the two of them.

"...Good work on your part in the student council." She left a finishing note as she ended their conversation.

"You're quite attentive today, Tohsaka." Natsu commented. Rin could only glance back with one open eye towards him before turning back again and replied nonchalantly.

"You too, Emiya-kun. Good work in helping out the student council." She then turned over to a corner from the corridor before disappearing from their sight.

"We should get going too, Natsu."

"That's strange..." Natsu pondered.

"What is it?"

"A-Ah, it's nothing. It's just that I'm surprised that she knows my name since I never really interacted with her once until now."

"Don't let your guard down around her, Natsu. It may not look like it but Tohsaka Rin is an embodiment of evil. Get too close and you'll regret it." Issei warned with serious tone in his voice.

"Is she that dangerous?" He doesn't know whether he should agree or not. Calling someone as an embodiment of evil sounds a bit too far though. "...Well, putting that aside, let's get back to our classes and be done with it."

"Yeah, sure."

The two went back to the class just in time as the third bell rang which signifies the end of their lunch break. And at the same time, a teacher soon walked over to the classroom and began to start their lessons.

Once again, Natsu felt sleepy the whole subject.

...

Knowing that the next subject would be as boring as the last one, he decided to use the last resort in order to escape himself from this boredom. As they were waiting for the next teacher, Natsu sneaked an opportunity and went on ahead on the rooftop to relax. It took a few minutes for him to reach the top as he opened the doors and finally smiled upon feeling the gentle breeze of the wind on his skin.

His pink hair brushed at its gentle tread as he walked towards the ledge of the rooftop and simply laid himself to rest. The silent serenity of the place was enough for him to be at ease and the cool wind of the ever changing season gave the most pleasant thing for him to break away from hard work.

"This is the best spot..." He cooed as he closed his eyes to sleep until a voice caught his attention.

...

"Do you feel it, Archer... The enemy is near." It was a rather familiar voice as he opened his eyes again, stirring away from the ledge and into the back side of the rooftop where the voice originated from.

"It seems like it though he isn't attacking yet." Another voice soon followed though he could not recognize who it was.

"He must be waiting for a chance to attack us."

"What are you going to do? Flush him out?"

 _'Tohsaka Rin? She's here?'_ Natsu thought out in realization as he recognized her scent from his nose however...

His attention soon turned over to the next person who seemingly conversing with her on the other end, though it's quite strange. He can't detect his scent like Rin. Normally, human beings lay some sort of scent wherever they go which gives him the idea of recognizing anyone even they were far away.

And this is the first time he encountered someone who has no scent at all.

Could it be that he was masking his own scent in order to prevent him from being exposed from others?

He got up from the ledge and tried to peek around the corner, only to find Tohsaka Rin staring at the scenery of the school to which he found it quite unusual.

At the same time, Rin noticed his gaze, causing her to widen her eyes in surprise.

"Emiya Natsu!" Rin exclaimed.

"Y-Yo!" He passed out a wave, realizing too late that he was found out.

"It's strange for you to be around at this time of hour. Aren't you suppose to be attending classes?"

"I could also say the same thing to you..."

"I excel in my own studies so this is just a small matter to me. While you, on the other hand, seemed to have some horrible grades. Cutting classes is a huge matter to you, is it not?" She inquired while maintaining a good facade towards him.

"I don't mind cutting since classes turn out to be boring sometimes." He reasoned.

"Typical reason for one becoming a delinquent." She remarked.

"That's one thing but I don't aim to be one."

"Then what are you doing here? It's my first time seeing you around in this place." She asked curiously.

"Well, I came here for some fresh air. Putting that aside, what are you doing here, Tohsaka?" He turned his gaze away for a moment before looking back at her after mentioning what he wanted to ask.

"Same reason as you since I just wanted some air to calm myself."

Natsu could only give her a confused look to which made her slightly irritated just by seeing the look on his face towards her.

"What's with that look?" As if her words managed to snap him back to reality, Natsu stuttered over his question.

"U-Uh... It's nothing. I-I just thought that you were talking with someone earlier. Something about an enemy or sort." He scratched his head, trying to keep the manner of conversation as normal as possible.

Upon saying that, Rin could only widen her eyes in shock as he spoke that last statement which soon changed her expression in which he didn't expect.

"What are you talking about?" Her tone of voice changed as that of a hostile person, prompting him to look at her in caution just now.

What happened to their normal conversation just now? Did he mention something offensive?

"F-Forget I asked! I didn't mean to pry too much. I didn't know you were that sensitive about it. Sorry." He frantically took his words back as a sign of apology, hoping to calm her down after seeing the enmity present in her eyes.

Fortunately, she calmed down as she closed her eyes for a moment, seemingly content.

"Well, if you put it that way, then I think I wouldn't need to explain."

"What the hell was that anyway? Who you were talking to?"

"Didn't I say it earlier? Don't ever mention about that topic ever again..." Her snarky attitude returned.

"Okay, okay I got it... Gee, what a pushover." Natsu shrugged his shoulders and not a moment long he heard the bell rang once again, indicating the end of their lessons.

"I'll be heading off ahead. I won't pry into that topic of yours since it gives you some discomfort."

"Then we also pretend that this conversation never happened too." Rin proposed.

"Agreed."

And in just like that, Natsu soon went ahead downstairs while Rin purposely waited for him to be finally out of sight until a mysterious white-haired person appeared beside her. He seemed to be wearing some sort of a black body armor with a red overcoat strapped on his arms, upper torso and lower body. He also wears a pair of metal plated shoes which was appears to be attached to his trousers as well.

"I told you to hide your presence when no one's around. You almost got him involved in this, Archer." Rin reminded him to which he only replied with a surprised expression.

"I was literally hiding my presence. Only servants will be able to detect my invisibility. It looks like that boy somehow recognizes me by hearing our conversation." Archer deduced.

"That far? No human would be able to hear us in that kind of distance."

"Indeed, I feel something on that boy too, though I can't imagine what it is..."

"For now, let's keep a small surveillance on Emiya Natsu. We still have a bigger problem ahead of us, Archer."

"Very well."

* * *

 ** _Back at the school grounds..._**

* * *

It was already five in the afternoon and the students were already returning home just as their own teachers instructed them to do in order to guarantee their safety about the problem arising from the recent murders from the neighborhood. Everyone was quite depressed of the recent development of the situation in the city as they had no choice but to comply for the time being until these cases are solved.

Natsu, together with Issei were at the student council room, finishing up their own things as well before going home.

It didn't take long for them to stay inside as they were already headed downstairs and into the school gate.

The sun was already setting as the whole sky was dyed in scarlet hue. Darkness slowly crept through the other side of the horizon as the day slowly came to an end.

"Then I'll be heading out soon. Don't go exceeding your time on the school curfew." Issei reminded as he gave one last glance to his friend.

"Don't worry about me, I'll just clean the dojo and be out as soon as I can."

"That Shinji really... Always shouldering his own duties to you as always. It would be better if you let him clean it. That would really straighten him out." Issei scowled.

"Well let's leave at that. I'll see you tomorrow, Issei."

"Ah... See you tomorrow."

Issei passed a wave towards him as he soon walked his way back to his home, leaving Natsu behind to finish the remaining chores.

He walked over to the dojo which was used by the archery club for their own practices and other sessions. Memories of his time in this place sure brings him back to those times when he was still a member. Those times were short-lived though as he felt kinda out of it despite having many expectations from others. After all, he never even missed a shot thanks to his enhanced senses.

He laid down his bag and began to stretch out his arms, seemingly ready for work.

"Let's get this started..."

Picking out a bucket of water and a small rug from one of the closets, Natsu began cleaning the floors and prepared some things for the archery club to use for tomorrow.

It took almost about two hours for him to finish all of it as he simply huffed after doing such a tiresome work. However, he didn't felt any strain from his body as he was used to heavy work. At the same time, night soon befell over the city and he was already way past the curfew.

"Crap, I need to get home soon... I took too much time here..." He muttered onto himself as he lost track of time.

He put all the things back to the closet and simply grabbed his bag before stopping completely as his senses soon felt a very disturbing sound.

 **CLANG* SHUNK* SHINK***

 **SHINK* CLANG* SHUNK***

"What the?" His eyes shifted towards the empty school courtyard where the sounds are currently emanating.

Sounds of steel clashing entered through his heightened ears which prompted him to approach it in curiosity. He left the dojo, not minding the things he left behind. The sounds grew stronger as he finally arrived at the scene, only to have his eyes widen in shock as he looked in disbelief at the sight before him.

There stood two males wearing in full body armor that was adored by intricate designs all over it. They seemed to have been fighting to the death as both are using some sort of ancient weapons. One seemed to be wielding a red lance while the other was wielding two crescent blades to counter the former. Sparks flew as both attacks collide from each other. Both are demonstrating superhuman strength that caused him to stare in awe.

Their reflexes were fast but he was able to see through their movements which are done mostly in overpowering or outsmarting the other―which in this case, killing each other.

The weapons used weren't exactly intended for any modern killing but rather in a duel-like situation where two fighters fight to the death with their own set of weapons at hand.

However, the deadly battle was seemed to be dangerous even for him.

He could feel the bloodlust in the air as these two seemed to be filled with a deathly presence, intent on killing anyone who stand in their way.

"W-What the hell is happening?"

There's something definitely wrong with these people. Aside from their unusual outfits and weapons, their appearances stands out differently from what can be seen in common places. It's ridiculous to assume for it to be some kind of a show since the movements were clearly inhumane by comparison. Moreover, the killing atmosphere was strongly present around them―more than any human could emanate.

 _'Crap! I need to get outta here!'_

He tried to make a run for it, hoping to avoid the carnage until he unknowingly broke a twig which created a suspicious sound that caught the attention of the one, wielding the lance. The figure turned around in his direction with a murderous look which prompted the pinkette to broke off to a sprint away from the battle in order to save himself.

He ran as fast as he could inside the building in hopes of losing the pursuer from his tail. He didn't stop. He just ran without looking back out of frustration and fear from the assailant.

It wasn't just an ordinary person. He could feel his gaze from afar that sparked danger to him which prompted him to run away in the first place. If what he saw from back then was true, it was no doubt that he can catch up to him in no time.

Eventually, he made it to the third floor as he took a short break before looking back to the corridor to where he just ran past into. So far there was no one chasing him at the moment which made him to breath a sigh of relief just from it.

"What in the world is happening back there?" He peered over the window to look down at the courtyard where the battle took place. There was no one around anymore, assuming that the battle had finally stopped.

And not long after, his eyes widen in realization as he made a narrow dodge from an incoming lance above his head. The figure appeared above him as the lance made contact to the ground, missing him in mere inches only from the head.

Natsu rolled a few meters to the floor due to the intensity of the impact. He grunted as he tried to get himself back up.

"For a human like you, I'm impressed that you were able to dodge that. No human would be able to notice my presence and have such impeccable reaction." The figure mused at his actions which didn't help Natsu at all.

"Who are you?!"

"Sorry, I don't give names to the ones who were about to die in the first place." The figure picked up the lance from the ground, leaving a small crack on the floor and pointed it towards the pinkette in a seemingly odd stance.

Natsu took a brief look at the figure as he was wearing a blue armor all over his body. His hair was also blue that reaches down to his back with a small thread tied just at the back of his neck. The lance he was using had some sort of intricate designs that he assumed that it came from an ancient history to which he didn't know of.

This is the first time he had the chance to see the face of one of the people back at the courtyard.

"W-Wait a minute! Why are you trying to kill me?" Natsu began to ask.

"You've seen too much and any human who were involved in this must be silenced at all cost no matter what methods we use. Too bad that it was just not your luck tonight. The next time we meet, be better prepared and go home early, kid."

"Wha―" He wasn't given a time to reply back as the lance instantly pierced his heart in a blink of a second. His eyes widen in shock and disbelief as he slowly looked down to his chest and found his clothes slowly drenched in red. Even with his enhanced senses, he could not trace the thrust just now.

The figure smirked as he pulled away the lance from his chest as the pinkette made a cough of blood and staggered afterwards, trying to get himself conscious despite the fatal wound he suffered.

"You're pretty tough for a human... Normally, you would die since you got your heart pierced easily. Anyway, it's your fault for seeing us. Take it as a man and do well to remember to go home next time." He walked away before disappearing completely into the darkness, leaving him bleeding to death.

Natsu clenched his chest as he tried to stop the bleeding and tried to walk into a safe place but the strength of his body instantly fade away and fell down to the ground, coughing up blood once again.

"T-This isn't happening... A-Am I g-gonna die like this?" Natsu weakly asked himself as his body became numb and cold, signifying his inevitable death.

His vision soon began to blur and blacken as his face became pale from the loss of blood. He couldn't take it anymore. There was no strength left move around except his weak eyes. The sounds became silent as he could not hear anything from the outside world. Soon afterwards, he lost all connection to his body as if he was severed from it. There's nothing he could do but to simply stare at the ceiling and as his death overcame him.

His breathing soon stopped as he died quickly, drenched in his own blood. The shining moon reflected through the windows of the corridor, giving enough visibility from the darkened room.

...

A figure soon appeared over from the corridor as she walked across it to scan the area. Her eyes soon widen in realization of the body laid down on the floor.

She cupped her mouth in horror as she could not help but tremble from her position until another figure appeared beside her.

"It's him, huh?"

"H-He shouldn't be here... Why it would be you of all people?"

"You did everything, Rin. There's no need to blame yourself after this."

"Wait, there's still a way to save him." The woman stopped in her thoughts before picking out a red jeweled pendant from her coat and simply placed it above him

"Rin, are you sure about this? You're using one of your family's treasured items over this boy."

"It's my own decision on whether to use it or not. As long as I can save him then I won't hesitate." The pendant soon glowed in red as it showered some red sparkles from it and eventually bathed him within it, repairing the the deep cut from his chest and somehow closed it completely to stop the bleeding any further.

The glow soon weaken and eventually faded away as Natsu began to breath slowly once again. At the same time, Rin dropped the pendant on the floor before turning around to walk away.

"Let's go, we still need to find Lancer."

"What about the pendant? Are you gonna leave it like that?" Archer asked before looking over to the pendant on the floor beside Natsu.

"The mana was already used for him. As a result, it's nothing but a normal pendant. It's useless having it being carried without any significance."

"..." Archer could only keep himself silent as he soon walked beside her, not wanting to press the topic any further.

They soon left as they continued to chase off their enemy outside, leaving him as he slowly began to return back to life.

* * *

 **...**

* * *

Natsu soon opened his eyes after finally able to muster enough strength to move once again. He sat up straight to look over to his surroundings.

There was no one around anymore.

He was quite unaware of what happened earlier as he was forced to stand up only to receive a mild pain in his chest that made him to look over it.

"W-What's going on?" He asked himself before widening his eyes in shock as he found his clothes drenched in blood, specifically at his chest. There was a deep cut from his clothes but he didn't see any fatal wound from his body.

Soon his head finally received the same pain as well as he held it with his arms as he desperately tried to ease it.

"Ugh, My head!" He groaned in pain as he tried to endure it for a quite longer.

Eventually, the throbbing pain stopped as he began to remember some things that transpired earlier just before his death.

That's right. He was stabbed by that person earlier with his lance. There's no mistaking it.

He got his heart pierced by his weapon. He should've died by now just from that fatal wound.

 _'What the hell is going on?'_

Suddenly, he noticed something beside him which prompted him to look at the side and saw a strange-looking pendant laid beside him. He picked it up from the floor and looked at its fine red color and could not help but be confused by it.

 _'A pendant?'_

Why was it laid down here? Is it someone's else pendant?

He set aside his thoughts for the moment and took the pendant with him before finally standing up to resume his journey back home. It's even more dangerous if he stayed here a little bit longer. He'd seen a lot of weird things happening around town. It's better to hurry back and rest his thoughts for now.

Without a moment to waste, he hurriedly staggered himself out of the school and into the streets towards his house to reassure his current situation.

...

It didn't take a full hour for him to get back to his house as he finally made his way in at the door and threw his shoes away from the mat and stumbled into the living room. There was a set of plastic-wrapped food with a letter strapped beside it which he assumed that it was from Sakura and Taiga. It must have been placed there since he came home late at night.

He finally sat at the corner of the room and began to think once again.

He looked up to the ceiling as he tried to remember of what he really witnessed back in the courtyard.

 _A battle._

 _Two men fighting with swords and lances._

 _His heart pierced by a weapon of old._

 _'What was that?_ _It didn't feel like they were in this world as well... Those clothes made out of material I've never seen before._ _And also, their weapons seemed to be not in this world either as if they were really ancient and mysterious.'_

They were seriously trying to kill each other and he just accidentally encountered them by mistake.

As he rattled in his thoughts, he soon realized something from what the figure said to him before he was being stabbed.

 _'You've seen too much and any human who were involved in this must be silenced at all cost no matter what methods we use.'_

That statement alone was enough for him to understand that no matter how he survived the wound, the mysterious figure won't stop from killing him twice. That's right, as long as he's alive, he won't stop coming after him until he silenced him for good.

Natsu hastily stood up from his seat and began to scan the house if there's anything suspicious from the outside. The silent atmosphere around him slowly changed into something unbearable as soon as his fear returned.

Suddenly, his eyes widen in surprise once again as he completely dodged an incoming attack from above as the man who killed him before landed right on top of it. Natsu managed to regain his footing this time as he narrowed his eyes towards the figure who simply stood up and shot off a glare towards him.

"Sheesh, to think that I would have to kill the same person twice in a day..." The same man from before lazily spoke as he pointed his lance towards him again.

"What a horrible luck you've got, boy."

And in just like that, Natsu's instincts suddenly went active for some reason as he grabbed a newspaper and folded it in protect himself. At the same time, a glow appeared on it as his reinforcement magic activated at the right time. The man was surprised as the pinkette was able to cast some sort of enhancement in the newspaper which enhanced its durability.

"Well now, that's some interesting magic you got there, boy..." He spoke in curiosity.

"...I take it that you're a magus too. Heh, it seems like I can have a bit of fun." As soon as he said that, he swung his lance sideways towards Natsu to which he used the newspaper to block it which caused him to stagger a bit from the intensity of the attack.

The man followed another swing and eventually was blocked yet again though Natsu could feel a little bit trembled from each attack he blocked.

"That's good! Now, how about this...!"

In one mighty thrust, the man went for his heart in the same manner he did in killing him. Natsu, being able to sense his movements more precise than before managed to deflect its trajectory, using his newspaper as it collided with the lance, sending it to the side. However, the speed of the thrust didn't give enough time for a whole miss as it grazed his left arm, creating a cut.

Natsu tried to back away but he eyes stared in disbelief as the man instantly appeared right in front of him in just a few seconds.

The man kicked him squarely in his abdomen, causing him to fly away from his footing and flew outside, breaking a window of his house as he crashed to the grass.

Natsu grunted in pain as he tried to recover his composure. The blow was not anything like he'd ever imagined. Just by taking one could've destroyed his stomach and send him into a spasm. Fortunately, his body was trained so the pain was limited but it still proved painful nonetheless. His instincts kicked up again as he rolled hastily from his previous position and dodged another piercing strike from the lance, ignoring the welling pain inside him.

He stood back up and took a few breaths as the man picked the lance once again and looked at him very closely.

"Say, you're pretty impressive for a human. To be able to use magic and dodge my attacks continuously was something that is not normal a human. You're not that fast to read my attacks last now. What happened, huh?"

"I don't know what you're talking about but I've been fighting for my life at the moment... Why would I even try to stand there and get killed for no reason." Natsu managed to reply, despite the hostility.

"Fair point but just like I said, you've seen too much and it's necessary for a human who witnessed it to die but since you're a magus, it's quite an exception."

"Then why are you still trying to kill me?"

"It'll be bad if I just leave like this without having to satisfy myself to kill."

"That's unreasonable for you to continue this."

"Stop talking and fight, boy!" The man suddenly dashed towards him and tried to stab him in the process. However, Natsu finally predicted his movements as he ducked underneath, clasping to the lance at hand and countered his attack with a powerful fist aimed at his face.

Seeing he restricted his weapon, Natsu thought inevitably of a clean strike against him as the fist drew near him.

"Not bad, boy..."

His eyes fell into disbelief as his fist was stopped by him with his other free hand.

"W-What?"

As he was trying to process his own thoughts, the man soon stood up from his position before smirking once again after getting a hit from the boy.

"Oh, this was surprising. I thought I'd hold back a bit but it seems you know how to properly fight."

Natsu eventually broke away to give some distance between them.

On the other hand, the blue-haired man pondered as he quietly observed him in curiosity.

To be honest, he didn't expect him to do something like that as he'd lowered his guard against him that time. Who would've thought that he was capable of doing such a thing. No matter how you look at it, it seems like he has a natural talent in fighting though it is clear in his eyes that he did not know anything of what he had done just now.

It must be mere coincidence.

"I'm impressed. But it seems like I played too much so I'm just gonna end this." He disappeared in a silver blur which caught Natsu by surprise as he soon appeared below him and kicked him furiously in the head which he managed to block with his arms that sent him flying towards the storeroom.

Natsu coughed roughly from his mouth as he crashed at the side of the wall. He fell with a thudded sound as he felt more pain all over his body, especially after taking an impact. He struggled to get back from his feet and tried to stagger his way inside but it only served as a dead end as he had nowhere to go with the man suddenly standing behind him a few meters away.

"You have potential, I give you that but you're still young. It wasn't really my intention to duel with a magus but..." He paused. "...There's a possibility that you're the seventh person. But even if that's the case, it all ends here." The man finished as he pointed his lance towards the pinkette.

"Farewell, kid. Don't go astray this time around."

Natsu could not help but see his end this how his life would really end?

He still have to find about his own past. Of why he was brought upon to this world? Even though he saw destruction for the first time, he still wanted to pursue to discover his own past as well no matter what the cost.

He can't die yet. Not until he found his true purpose in this world.

Just as he was about to be stabbed, markings soon glows out from his left hand and eventually, a hidden magic circle between them glowed in bright light as powerful gales soon followed afterwards, knocking off the man's lance from stabbing Natsu.

"W-Wha...What? The Seventh Servant?!"

The man felt dumbfounded as he suddenly raised his own lance to block an incoming swing coming from the gale which prompted him to give a short distance away for safety. He clicked his tongue as an unknown figure appeared before him and tried to strike him down again, causing him to dodge and leap further away once again.

Natsu felt the need to punch himself as he was seeing something very surreal in his own life.

There stood a woman wearing some sort of an azure dress with multiple armor plates. Her golden hair fluttered gracefully as the winds of the night swayed around her. A some sort of a mist is seen covering her hand as if she was holding something that it's not meant to be seen by the eyes of man. The woman soon slowly opened her viridescent eyes which gaze over to his black, onyx eyes as well.

"I ask of you, are you my master?" She spoke firmly as he was left dumbfounded by her appearance.

And at that moment, it was his first meeting with fate.

* * *

 **A/N: And that's a wrap. First chapter was done and the following events will continue to the next chapter so stay tuned.**

 **It may seem like it but I am a bad writer in doing up first chapters in my stories so if you find any oddities in it, then that is one of my flaws. Keep that in mind.**

 **And also, regarding Natsu's personality. He may inherit some of Shirou's sense of justice but the term nakama would be more suitable for him so it's gonna be like that. His powers are yet to be awakened in the later chapters which will be revealed soon so wait for a bit longer since I'm quite busy at the moment.**

 **That's all for now guys, see ya on the next chapter and don't forget to leave a review!**

 **\- wiErD SpeCtrumz blacking out... ...**


	2. The Holy Grail War

**A/N: Hi and hello to everyone. wiErD here. Just came back for another chapter for this story.**

 **Hope you guys like it. :)**

 **Disclaimer: I never own FT and Fate/stay night nor its characters. All goes to their respective owners.**

* * *

 **\- The Holy Grail War -**

* * *

"I ask of you, are you my master?"

Her voice echoed through his ears as the mysterious woman stood in front of him with an elegant composure. He was still not sure of how to respond as he was left to gaze in awe at the wonderful yet surreal sight.

"Servant Saber, I have come in response of your summons." She spoke yet again, giving off some kind of ominous aura that made him so hard to depict of what she was. It is as if she wasn't human, despite her appearance.

This woman is probably one of those people who was fighting him just now though it seems like she's very friendly.

"Master... Y-You said you were a servant?" Natsu finally spoke, stuttered out of his daze despite much of his confusion in the current situation.

"Yes. Those markings in your hand prove more than anything that you are indeed a master... " She paused before placing her hand over her steel-clad chest as if pledging herself like a knight.

"...From here on out, my blade will rest in your hands and your destiny will rest in my hands. Our contract is now complete." She spoke continuously making Natsu to interrupt her in the process.

"Wai―Wait a moment! What do you mean contract?" The bizarre things began creeping him out, forcing him to stall his astonishment of the knight's elegance and focus on the matter at hand but he was ignored as she simply averted her gaze from him, feeling the presence of the assailant still outside of the shed.

"It seems like the enemy is still in the vicinity." She narrowed her eyes in alarm as she prepared herself for battle. "Master, wait here.."

"What are you intend on doing?" He asked.

"I intend on defeating our enemy... I will triumph in the Grail War." With words he couldn't seem to follow, she left and sprinted outside with her invisible sword ready in her hands. Natsu stood completely dumbfounded. The threat of danger was already out of his system, overwhelmed by the sudden turn of events that made him even more confused to look at it.

"War? Triumph? Enemy? I don't get it!" He ruthlessly scratched his head. He could only grit his teeth in frustration as he stood up from his position and tried to follow her outside to see what was happening. "Dammit! What the hell is she saying? I don't get it at all..."

He groaned as he staggered his way outside to reveal the impending battle before him.

The night was still young and the illuminating moon continuously gave off its brilliance to the nocturnal world. The sound of civilization was rendered silent, replaced by a flurry of metals sparking off the dead night with its thunderous noise. Natsu got outside only to see the woman and the person wielding the lance face to face against each other. Both are wearing dead serious faces as both sides continued to stare each other down. The blue-haired man then loosened up his face as he dons a relaxed expression after a minute of parrying each other's attacks.

"Can I ask you one question? You're not intending to save our fight till the next time we meet, aren't you?"

"What? Are you scared, Lancer?" The woman in armor provoked.

"Heh, don't be ridiculous. I'm not as much of a coward than my master."

He soon cast a glance towards Natsu who suddenly widen his eyes in alarm from his gaze. His eyes gave off a huge warning for the pinkette after narrowly escaping his death from him twice. He can never be too careful once he flaunts his red lance all over the place.

Lancer gave a sigh as soon as he knew what was exactly happening around him.

"Well, it seems like your master over there doesn't know anything about what's going on... Wouldn't it be a good idea if you two were completely prepared before facing me in battle?" He suggested with a hand gesture as a means of negotiating with the other side. Though it failed to faze the woman as she simply held her invisible sword towards him, seemingly in a stance.

"I refuse... If two Servants were to clash one another, there will be no next time... Let's settle this right now!" She declared firmly as she began to create some small gales of wind around her, prompting the release of her power. The atmosphere has gotten a lot more dangerous than it was as soon Natsu saw the fierce glint coming from the lance-wielding warrior towards his fellow opponent.

"Heh, well said! But you're foolish enough to not have drawn your weapon in the face of your own battle!" He suddenly dashed towards her with his lance ready to kill her as well.

But just as he was about to go for the kill, her sword suddenly swept through the lance thereby deflecting it in the process which made the person to widen his eyes in surprise.

 _'She parried?!'_

He cursed inwardly as the lance's direction was deflected sideways which gave him an opening for her to strike back. He noticed how fast for her to lift such a heavy sword and make quick slashes that even he have to keep up in order not get fatally wounded in the process. Even with the invisible spell attached to her weapon, he was able to deduce the characteristics of it, giving him enough knowledge to the length and structure it has. Nevertheless, the weapon remains a mystery to what capabilities it might have in store. He took a brief look over to the invisible sword she was wielding and could not help but to use his focus to return his composure and hastily blocked the incoming attack.

The sword and the lance collided to each other that generated a small shockwave as the man was forced to back himself up before being pushed further from the powerful counter. He grunted in frustration as he tried to hold off his footing before finally stopping a few meters away from her.

Meanwhile, Natsu was simply amazed on how the woman was able to push back the man despite her small body in comparison to her opponent. Not only that, she was able to hold herself and eventually continued to overpower him in the process.

However, the mystery about her appearing before his eyes remains a question for him that needs to be answered for later. Right now, he'll just have to focus on her driving off the man away from here.

...

On the other hand, the man simply stopped for a second and began to examine the woman with his wolf-like eyes. It didn't take long for him to understand what kind of opponent he was currently facing against. Even though, it's just a simple task, he still need to be careful especially that he stumbled unto Saber, one of the classes that specializes in close-combat aside from him.

"Let me ask you one thing, that weapon of yours is a sword, right?" He inquired as if he was trying to confirm something.

"Who knows... It may be a battleaxe or even a bow itself. It does not matter what kind of weapon it is I hold for I will defeat you right here, right now." She said with finality which only made him smirk evilly from it.

"Heh, you jest. Don't even try dodging the subject, Saber." He smirked.

"...After what my worthless master gave me this boring scouting mission, I realized that I drew the bad card for this Grail War and was about quit it for good. But things are starting to get more interesting." He snickered as he began to move up to his own battle stance with his lance ready for battle.

As soon as he said that, Natsu caught some very disturbing contents from those statements he got from him. He had repeatedly heard something about called the 'Grail War' which was something that the woman also mentioned and her purpose of fighting that man.

But what exactly is it? What's the importance of the Grail War to these people?

He didn't know. But he knew that it has something to do with the markings that had appeared from his hand earlier. There's no mistaking it.

His thoughts were soon cut off as the woman began to speak once again in the midst of the battle.

"It seems that at least your mouth is well off... But if you're also a Servant, might as well speak with your lance as well." She moved into her own stance against him which resulted the man to laugh from her insult against him.

"Haha! If you insist, then I'll welcome you. I'll use this spear to DESTROY you, Saber."

The man soon glowed in his own magic as his aura becomes stronger as he begins to gather up everything in his vicinity which made the woman to slightly widen her eyes in shock and disbelief. Even Natsu was able to feel the intensity of aura he was emitting which made him greatly disturbed by its presence.

What an amazing amount of magical energy... And such killing intent.

This is the first time he had ever been in such a situation. From the looks of it, it made him sweat in fear.

It almost looks like he was gathering heat around him specifically into his own lance, except that it merely comprises of violent masses of magic focusing on one focal point. Natsu knew exactly well how magic can be powerful if it was pressured enough or focused on one single position. It was one of the fundamentals that describe the nature of magic and how they're used by the magi. The only problem is that the man is neither a mage nor a human for that matter but he was garnering an excess amount of magic that it would put all experienced magi to shame practicing in almost a decade or century.

After a few seconds of charging up his own magical power output, the man soon shot a killing glare at the woman who was trying to be cautious from the deadly aura he was emitting.

"Now then, I'll pierce your heart!" He shouted as he went in for a charge towards her, increasing his speed than before which made the woman to open her eyes in shock at his speed. Natsu wasn't able to trace his movement for a moment as he soon stopped before her, ready to thrust the lance towards her in any moment. His feet stomped on the ground, feeling a strong force that slightly sunk them in the process, forming a pair of cracks underneath.

Knowing that his position is very low, the woman made a plan of her own as she assumed that she may able to dodge it easily and return with an attack from above.

"Prepare yourself!"

 **"GAE BOLG! ! !"** He shouted briefly as the lance thrusted like a soaring meteor at close range. The woman tried to parry back against the deadly thrust which seemed to have made contact, believing that she was able to block it completely however...

The space around his spear seemingly distorted itself and eventually bent its direction to which made the woman to widen her eyes in shock.

And in just a blink of a second, the spear redirected its trajectory and pointed back on its original target.

The lance pierced through the woman's chest which shocked Natsu from afar. It was very fast for him to notice it even with his own heightened senses but he knew it was finally over when blood soon smeared over to the grass which probably came from the woman itself. He never actually thought that the man would really kill her.

As this was going, the man simply smirked as he successfully dealt his own finishing blow to the other Servant as well.

Gae Bolg... A weapon that twists causality. The battle has long been decided ever since the spear itself was thrown. Once it pierces the heart then it will be all over in an instant. Therefore, it is impossible to prevent the lance from piercing its target. Even if you are Saber, there's no way...

Knowing that woman will never survive that attack, the man sighed in satisfaction as he felt that he overstepped the bounds of his own mission as well.

But just as he was about to lower his guard, he immediately widen his eyes in alarm as the woman performed a slash from above, threatening to cut him down again. He took as step back as he saw the woman still standing up even after that devastating attack.

"H-How did you..?" He paused as he tried to scan the woman's injuries, only to see that the spear didn't exactly hit its mark on her chest. Instead it merely grazed her armor on the left to which she still injured herself but alive nonetheless.

"A-Are you saying that you managed to dodge a blow from my deadly lance, Gae Bolg?" Hearing the true name of his spear, Saber could only widen her eyes in surprise as she finally knew the true identity of the weapon.

"Gae Bolg?! So that's the name of your weapon... In that case, you must be..." Before she could even continue, the man simply grit his teeth in frustration.

"Tch, that's too bad. To think that my true identity would be discovered this soon." The man soon looked over to the distance and simply began to walk away form her to which made her to raise her guard in alarm.

"Are you running away?" She demanded.

"I'm afraid I have to do so since my master ordered me to... If you wish to follow me, then feel free to do so if you have death wish that is..." And with that, he retreated from the household and simply disappeared into distance.

"Wait!" Saber tried to follow but her injuries begins to give off a stinging pain to her body as she was forced to kneel to subdue it.

Natsu saw this and could not help but ran over to her, seeing that the battle had came to an end. At the same time, the tense atmosphere fled alongside with the man as night continued on as usual.

"Hey... Are you alright?!" He shouted as he came over to her.

However, Saber simply gave made a deep breath for herself and begins to stand up before slowly letting out her hand from her injury. Natsu stopped in his tracks as he saw the injuries from her body was seemingly gone in an instant.

He couldn't believe he was seeing. It's like a fast healing regeneration or some sort. Something he had seen in some movies and shounen mangas he'd been reading but he never thought that it actually existed. It was impossible to do that kind of feat as it was very un-humanlike.

"J-Just what are you people?!" He demanded to ask to which Saber only turned her gaze towards him.

"I am a servant that you summoned to participate in the Grail War. I already said this earlier, Master."

"I know that, but what exactly is this 'Grail War' you're talking about? What does it involve with Masters and Servants? And who the hell are you? I'm grateful that you saved me but you two made a mess in my house and I'll have to pay for the damages!" He asked confusingly, totally unsure what kind of emotion he should express. He was thankful for her but at the same time, pissed how their little escapade turned the whole courtyard into one small battlefield.

However, Saber could only nod to herself in realization as she put the pieces in place.

"I see, it seems like you really don't know anything do you, Master..." She paused before lifting her head to meet his gaze.

"In that case, I shall answer you, The Holy Grail War, it is a battle to the death between seven masters who was chosen by the Grail to participate in order to achieve their goals and wishes. The Holy Grail is an existence that can grant any wish to the one who manages to obtain it..." She paused yet again before giving a serious look. "...Us, Servants serve our masters as instruments or familiars for the purpose of battling other masters..." She pointed a finger towards Natsu.

"And you were chosen to participate in this ritual as one of the seven masters."

Despite her explanation, Natsu couldn't feel but disturbed at some parts she mentioned.

A battle to the death? Holy Grail? It doesn't add up. Why was he chosen to participate in this deathmatch? Everything just happens to fast, starting from his encounter of one of their own battles. What comes next is that he was dragged or rather chosen to be part of it. And he didn't want that.

Just as he was about to reply for himself, he was silenced by Saber as she raised her hand near his mouth and looked towards the other direction.

"Master, I sense another Servant coming this way. We will talk later." She spoke before sprinting off by herself towards the incoming figure.

"Wait! What do you mean another? An enemy?!" He shouted but was ignored once again. By that moment, she was already running off as if it was an one in a lifetime opportunity.

"Damn it all!" He cursed underneath his breath as he too went to follow Saber.

Holy Grail... Masters... Servants... Is she saying that all of these nonsense are actually true? Fuck this... I still haven't gotten my answer dammit! Don't go running away from me when I'm not done talking so suddenly!

He made a left turn, only to find Saber already slashed the intruder with her invisible sword in his left shoulder. Blood smeared yet again to the ground and the figure grunted in pain as he was left surprised from the appearance of Saber in front of him.

"Wha―"

"Archer!" A feminine voice resounded from the back of the figure as Archer turned towards her.

However, Saber didn't stop. She ignored the injured Servant, seeing that he had no means to fight back and simply dashed infront of him and into the female, threatening to cut her down.

"Eeeeek!" The girl quivered as she saw Saber coming close to her with her own sword ready to slice her open without mercy.

Wait, is she going to kill that girl too? Even though she was an enemy, you intend in murdering her without remorse. That's just not right. That is not what works around here, Saber! That's not what old man would actually do. I will not stand here waiting someone to be killed right before my eyes.

In an instant, his senses kicked in as he dashed right between Saber and the girl, hoping to stop the the sword from killing the girl behind her. Saber widen her eyes in surprise as she saw Natsu went between her with sheer speed and determination to stop her assault from the girl.

"You fool! You're gonna get yourself killed!" She exclaimed her eyes in shock as she tried to stop her impending attack but it was too late. The sword was already swung down towards Natsu, letting him face to face with her invisible yet deadly sword.

 ***SHING***

The sound of a sword suddenly stopping was heard throughout the area as Saber widen her eyes in disbelief as she eventually saw Natsu barely grabbed her sword with his own bare hands.

"Wha―" A stuttered gasp of surprise went over to the woman's face as she was unable to comprehend what her master had done.

 _'T-That's impossible... How could he caught the blade with his own bare hands? And he also knew where the sword will actually strike?'_

No one in her life was able to hold off her attack by merely catching it. It was her first time seeing a normal person actually stopped her sword just like that. What's more is that he was able to predict where the sword actually is even though it was invisible.

No human being was able to do that until now. And yet, she saw her master, literally stopped her sword as it was mere inches to his face. Even the girl and the wounded person was shocked at the unfolding event.

"S-Stop it, Saber!" Natsu shouted in defiance as his hands soon glowed in magic and eventually restricted the swordswoman from doing so. She felt her body turn rigid as she was forced to lift her blade from him, finally letting go of his hold on the invisible sword.

As soon as the command fulfilled its purpose, Saber then looked at the pinkette with questioning eyes.

"Why did you stop me, Master?" She demanded. "...She's an enemy, If we don't kill her now―" She was cut as Natsu interrupted her.

"No... I cannot accept this... Hurting people with no good reason is unacceptable. And even she's an enemy, there's no need to kill her just like that.." Natsu spoke in defiance.

"What are you saying such nonsense? She is accompanied by a Servant. There's no doubt that she is a master. An enemy that we must defeat at all costs." She reasoned.

"Even so, there's no need for killing them, am I right? Just defeat them you said. Killing them is no different from murdering a person and I will not accept any of that kind of act. As your master, I ask you to stand down." He spoke in a dead serious face which only made Saber to stare at him for a moment, as if examining his very expression and looked away.

She soon walked past Natsu and placed herself between him and the girl as her caution was still imminent even after all what's happened.

Just as they were done talking to each other, the girl simply smiled in satisfaction as she too began to speak for herself.

"You're still rather composed aren't you? Even though there's an enemy right in front of you. Anyway, are you going to turn a blind eye on me? If so, will you step back for a bit, Saber-san." She began to stand up from her feet as she revealed herself from the darkness, shocking Natsu as he recognized the face of the girl before him.

"Y-You... T-Tohsaka?!" He exclaimed in surprise as Rin simply gave a formal bow towards him.

"Good evening, Emiya-kun. For now, I guess I'll have to thank you for sparing me from Saber."

"Someone you know, Master?" Saber inquired to which Natsu simply nodded.

As this was going on, the twin-tailed girl immediately took a step towards Natsu as she quickly grabbed his hand to where his unusual markings had appeared recently from the fight with the man earlier. The sudden closeness of her startled the clueless master whose cheeks slightly blushed as a result.

"H-Hey, what are you doing with my hand?" She ignored his question as she observed it for a few moments before letting out a small sigh afterwards.

"Listen Natsu, I'm going to give you a little advice... Your command spells are your trump card in this war. You must never use them again from petty things like this."

"Eh?"

"Well, you did use one to save me after all so I have no choice but be grateful to you?" She smiled before letting go of his hand.

"Wait a minute... What do you mean by 'trump card'? I really don't remember ever using this before, you know. They just popped up after Saber appeared to save me." He asked about her statement earlier.

"Are you... ... ...Are you sure that you're really a Master?" Rin tried to confirm before widening her eyes in realization.

"Wait a second... you're not telling me that you don't understand the Command system and you also don't know anything about the Holy Grail War, aren't you?"

"Do I look like I know anything about that crap?" Natsu spoke with sarcasm.

"Shut up..." She hissed.

"Whatever."

He shrugged his shoulder in thought before remembering something.

"Well, I did heard something about it from Saber but I don't know all of it." He reasoned to which made Rin to sigh again in depression.

"Then that makes you no different than a complete novice mage... Gimme a break."

"Well, sorry for being one. Actually, it was you and your friend that dragged me into this ordeal."

"Who was the one who stayed up in school in the middle of the night?"

"So it was really you? I can't believe you've been hiding something suspicious but I didn't expect that it would get me mixed up in this mess."

"What were you doing at that time? You don't suppose you were waiting on your rendezvous with a secret someone, aren't you? Rin smirked hideously.

"I-I-I was just cleaning that's all..." He looked away in embarrassment.

Rin rubbed her temples in pain. What a ridiculous reason is it to stay late at night just to clean? In honesty, she never really saw the pink-haired boy to be such a cleaning maniac. She understood the notion behind him helping constantly at the student council but it wasn't really enough for her to sink in since she doesn't come to school that often. It doesn't fit his character being all... loose, wild and laid-back.

Well, that kind of personality somehow seemed fine to her. After all, she had grown tired of the school troupes that's been a center-figure of school culture around the world. Natsu seemed to stand out in a different way that isn't seen as someone relevant to other students but still manages to pique interest from certain people... like her.

Although this time, it might be just coincidence that he became a master like her... And without prior knowledge of what he had gone himself to. He couldn't be a non-magus right? But then again, the Holy Grail can still select someone even without magic circuits unto his body. After all, there are not many organizations in garnering talented mages to participate in the war. Only the three known families behind the creation of the ritual, the Einzbern, Tohsaka, and the now extinct Matou family can prepare participants and are solid enough to become prominent players to take the slot. The rest can be decided either by other organizations with other agendas or individuals who wanted to take part in it.

"Oh well, fine... I guess it was my fault earlier for being so careless about it." She sighed again before looking at Natsu and eventually began to walk towards his home.

"Where are you going, Tohsaka?"

"Let's talk inside, we'll talk more about the war itself to help you get started in understanding the whole of it." And with that, she entered the house.

...

"Master, I sense no malicious intent coming from her words at the moment... I think it would be best if you accept her offer and listen to what she has to say. It will give us a higher chance in surviving in this war with you having to know some general information about the matter at hand." Saber proposed.

"Was planning to. Can't really turn her down now since she was a pushy person and all..." Natsu sighed before finally moving towards his house with Saber following him.

* * *

 **...**

* * *

It took a couple of minutes for the three to reassess themselves as Natsu changed himself in a pair of clean clothes and eventually settled at the table beside Saber and Rin across them. She was currently drinking a hot coffee from which he had made to at least show his gratitude on her stay in his house at the moment.

Putting the cup down with her hands, she breath a sigh of relief as she began to explain.

"Well then, to begin my explanation, I would certainly recognize you as one of the masters. I was also one of the official masters chosen in the current Grail War. And just like you, I'm a magus... Although it seems like you didn't recognize me as one, Emiya-kun."

"B-But at school, you were... a person who can tell is an excellent student. And you were regarded as one of the idols by the boys in school." He stated what he could see in her.

"Hoh, do you also regard me as an idol, Emiya-kun?" She smirked but Natsu simply made a deadpanned expression.

"No, no... Don't misunderstand me, Tohsaka... The boys can drool whatever they want... as long as I can get some sleep or amusement from it." He explained which was clearly the opposite reaction that Rin would actually expect from him since he was a boy.

"You're a firebrand, aren't you? Despite your words earlier about forbidding killing."

"Well, that's a different case... Anyway, shall we move on?"

"If you say so... As I was saying earlier, a magus should always hide her true colors, after all. Emiya-kun, you've been hiding the fact that you're a magus too, aren't you?" She asked which slightly surprised the pinkette.

"So you knew?"

Well that's easy to say since the candidates for becoming a master requires you to be a magus... Though in your case, becoming a master was merely accidental. I'm also surprised by myself to think that you were one of the masters as well."

"I-I see... So you too huh?" He muttered. Disregarding the disappointing tone evident from her voice, he resumed their topic nonetheless.

"Anyway, let's get to the main subject. The Holy Grail War, as you can see, is a battle the simply revolves around the ownership of the grail itself by one of the seven masters who managed to reign victorious. A command mantra and a servant are given to the masters in order to assist them in that war. I'm sure Saber had given you already some facts regarding that matter." Rin looked over to Saber.

"Eh..? A-Ah, yeah. She did tell me the general outline of things." Natsu soon turned over to her as well in affirmation. And not a moment sooner, he looked over to his left hand and saw the markings embedded into it. "...So is this the command mantra you spoke of?"

"Yes, they are proof that you are indeed a master." Rin replied.

"Wait a moment. Now that I looked at it again, it feels as if its shape had changed earlier..." He observed confusingly over to his hand.

"Master... Your command mantra has its three strokes that grants you the authority to give your servant three absolute commands which the servants will carry out to the extent of their abilities. Using its strokes, for example, it enables you to force your servant to carry out an order he is unwilling to follow." She explained as she looks towards the pinkette with an assertive look.

"I see, so the reason why I was able to stop you was because..." He stopped as Saber simply finished his own statement.

"That's right... It was due to the power of the command mantra."

"Well, it didn't help much since Natsu was forced to catch the blade before he could even issue an order to stop you from cutting me down. A waste of Command Spell, you see..." Rin simply butted in with a look of curiosity towards Natsu.

"That also intrigues me... How are you able to stop my blade with just your hands since it was your first time seeing everything?" It was Saber's turn to ask in curiosity as she shifted her attention to him.

"I-I don't know... Maybe it's just from instinct."

"A normal human can never react that fast and eventually predict the size of the blade of where it landed." Both Rin and Saber were unconvinced.

"I'm telling the truth... I just don't know how I did it in the first place." Natsu flailed his arms in denial.

Knowing the truth in his eyes, Rin and Saber simply calmed down as they can't really find the reason behind that action. If what he says is true then there's no need to press him down for more details. They'll leave it as it is for now.

"Well anyway, I must also warn you beforehand that you should never use your command mantras carelessly. They are the sole reason of why servants are compelled to obey you. Without them, you wouldn't able to control a servant because they are far too powerful for mere humans to handle." Rin continued.

"So that's why they're called 'trump cards'." Natsu guessed.

"Correct..." She paused. "...You see, servants are actually the spirits of heroes that actually existed."

Hearing that information only made Natsu quite shocked from it.

"Wai...Wait! You mean by the ones in the old legends?!" He clarified.

"That's right. Legends, Folklore, Mythology, and many more... And if you wanted to count them all, you would never finish. People who achieved great deed in their lifetime will ascend to the 'Throne of Heroes' after their death and the Holy Grail made it possible to summon those spirits back to this world in seven different classes." She stopped.

"Classes? Like a soldier or a knight?"

"Close but there are only seven specific classes where the Holy Grail appeals on those heroes. That includes Saber, Lancer, Berserker, Archer, Caster, Assassin, and Rider."

"By doing so, the Holy Grail assigns them into appropriate classes and eventually allots them to the masters. Lastly, the master will fight against each other and the last one standing shall gain ownership of the Holy Grail..."

"That's what the Grail War is all about..." Rin finished as Natsu finally understood the whole situation behind it. But something still doesn't make sense to him.

"I-Isn't it wrong to just use people's lives as if they were used in some sort of a game?" He asked but Rin could only shook her head towards him.

"That's exactly the way of how you put it... This is a game between seven magi who were chosen to participate in this ritual... Using both servants and command mantras are the game pieces in order to obtain the Holy Grail they desire." She explained to which doesn't really convinced Natsu at all.

Sure, it was a ritual... But a battle between seven chosen people with no choice but to kill each other all of the sake of some sort nonsensical thing? IT sounds stupid but the faces of both Rin and Saber were genuine and the so-called Grail War is actually true.

He tighten his fists in frustration as he simply doesn't get the purpose of participating a ritual that would ensure your death.

"There's also a place that I want to take you to..." Rin soon stood up from her seat and began to prepare herself towards the door.

"Where are you going?"

"Just come with me..."

* * *

 ** _Outside the streets of Shinto..._**

* * *

The population in the streets were almost near to none as Rin and Natsu simply walked into the ghostly town as the night continued. After they departed from the house, they've been walking for about one and a half hour towards the place that Rin wanted to show Natsu of. Despite that, he didn't complain. As much as he wanted to sleep right now and think to himself that this was all a dream, he must at least understand the current state he is.

As they walked, a convoy of ambulances went past them with their sirens blaring loudly throughout the night in contrast to its silent atmosphere.

"Hey, Tohsaka... Those ambulances... Are those..."

"Yeah... It seems there has been another gas leak accident. It sure has become unsafe around these parts."

"I wonder how many people been sent to the hospitals this time around. It seemed like they were more many than I've seen in the TV." Natsu pondered in thought.

"By the way Emiya-kun, are you really okay to do that idea of yours.." She asked confusingly as she began to look back behind them.

"It couldn't helped though... It would attract a lot of attetion if she walked around in that armor of hers." He sighed as he soon looked back too, only to reveal Saber wearing some sort of a raincoat with a hood to conceal her appearance from the onlookers.

"Master... Even though I can't change to my spirit form at the moment... I don't think this kind of treatment is actually fair." Saber contemplated about her current situation. At the same thing, Rin could only shook her head in depression as she felt pity for Saber.

"Must be hard for you to have made such a contract with a completely inexperienced magus, huh?" She spoke.

"Say, Tohsaka... Servants can make themselves invisible by changing to their spiritual form, right?"

"Yeah..."

"So your servant from before, is he like in his spirit form right now?" He inquired.

"Yeah, I ordered him to retreat back to his spirit form in order to avoid the finishing blow from Saber... Currently, he's recuperating in order to heal his wounds." She explained.

"I see... I'll have to say sorry in advance for that. And also for you to explain all these things even though we're enemies." He scratched the back of his head however, Rin simply wore a serious and uncaring expression towards him.

"Please don't misunderstand, Natsu. I just don't want to be caught up in some kind of debt to you. It's your choice whether you want to fight or not but if ever should we cross paths again, I won't hesitate to kill you." She spoke before turning back to her direction and walked ahead of him and Saber. "...If you continue to be some sort of a pacifist between masters, you'll have a higher chance to die. So please, don't think of me as your ally, Emiya Natsu."

Natsu eventually saw through the determination on her expression. She really meant everything in it as if she doesn't even regard their brief time together to know what was going on. It was also then he realized that what she said is true as well.

Like what she just said earlier, this is a battle between masters and their servants over to the possession of the grail itself. And she is just one of his enemies that he needed to beat some time in the future. But even so, a part of him doesn't want to battle her no matter how she turns hostile to him. As a fellow classmate and friend, he just couldn't do it like that.

Changing the said topic about the two of them, Natsu soon began to ask.

"So where are we actually going?"

"I'm taking you to the man who is supervising the current war. His job is to manage the Grail War all by himself. I thought it would be a good idea if you meet him right away and tell him your decision about participating in this war or not."

...

It didn't take a couple of minutes as they finally arrived to their destination. The place was actually a secluded small church with cemented road the leads it to its entrance. Bushes were aligned just beside the pavement as the cold breeze soon brushed past them.

"We're here... This is the Kotomine Church."

For some reason both Natsu and Saber tensed just by seeing the structure of the church itself as if there's something fishy about it. All they know is that they shouldn't step in this place. Funnily enoough, it's quite ironic since it represents a place of haven for the lost lambs in Christian belief. To feel it having such dreadful aura, it must've been tainted by some means one could not spoke for.

"Don't worry... I've known the priest here a long time so we won't be in any danger." Rin clarified before moving towards the huge doors to open it.

"Master, I will remain here to defend the church just in case an attack should come from the front." Saber proposed.

"Well, it's fine but it's not like they're going to attack us right now ever since that time back at the house." Natsu reasoned.

"Only one servant was present at that time, you must not forget the other masters as well. Plus, I sense danger in the air. You should also be on your guard even after inside."

"Okay... You're right. then, I'll heading inside. Wait for a bit, okay?" Saber could only nod as Natsu understood and finally went inside the gloomy church together with Rin.

A darkened hall beckons the two as the doors slowly opened in front of them. A creaking sound echoed through the sacred halls, revealing a lifeless congregation. After moving inside, Rin and Natsu walked towards the altar as they passed a series of empty wooden couches.

"Kirei! You're here, aren't you? I've brought the seventh master." She called out, knowing that he might appear soon as well.

"Ahhhhhhhhhh. I see..." A voice soon resounded to their right as Natsu was left to stare unto man who seemed to be in his mid-thirties as he walked out from one of the pillars and towards the altar to face them. The two didn't notice his presence at all which put the pinkette on a slight guard while Rin continued on as usual.

His clothes consist only that of a black cassock. His inner clothes only resembles a vestment and a golden cross strapped around his neck. His black hair reaches further down to his neck and his eyes were almost seemed like a pair of empty orbs without feelings or emotions present within them.

"Welcome, boy. I am Kotomine Kirei." The priest simply greeted in a formal way which slightly disgusted the pinkette for some reason he don't know.

"Are you the supervisor of the Grail War?" Natsu asked.

"That I am.. What is your name?"

"Emiya Natsu." Kirei took a brief look on his face before nodding in response from his answer. Although Natsu didn't notice, a slight gasp of shock went through the priest's face after hearing his last name.

"Well then, Emiya Natsu... So you're saying that you're the last master.." Before he could even continue, Natsu soon butted in once again.

"Wait! I'll tell you this right away to your face that I have no intention of becoming a master." Natsu spoke firmly.

"Oh?" Kirei could only quirk his brow interestingly at his sudden outburst.

"As you can see, he doesn't understand anything about our situation so I thought of an idea of bringing him to you to let you explain everything about this." The twin-haired girl joined in.

"I see... Well in that case, let me ask you Emiya Natsu. Whether if it's some kind of mistake, you were inevitably chosen to be a master by the Holy Grail. If you managed to obtain the Holy Grail, all your wishes will come true. Surely, that reason alone will cause anyone to undoubtedly participate for the sake of their own goals."

"I don't give a damn about granting my own wishes. Plus, this war itself is completely ridiculous! Fighting a battle to the death over something like that? How is it reasonable for me to join in the fray as well?" He demanded.

"So you're afraid of killing? Those don't sound like the words of a magus... A magus must be always prepared to put his life on the line to fight but it would seemed like that you were nothing but a mere coward." Kirei reasoned.

"What did you say?!" Natsu growled in anger as he finds him to be quite insulting towards him no matter how composed he is.

Unaware for him, tiny embers are slowly dripping from his hands to which anyone didn't noticed it as they were simply looking at him getting angered all of a sudden.

"Did I strike a nerve?"

"Just so you know, I'm not a coward and it's not like I wanted to run away from this whole thing too..." He paused. "I simply don't have the reason to fight over a grail to which I didn't really need it."

"Is that how it is to you? Then let me tell you this, the Holy Grail can grant any wish you might have, you know. And there are some masters who were blinded by their own selfish desires..." He looked back at Natsu with questioning eyes.

"What will happen if one of those people used the Holy Grail for that purpose?"

"E-Eh? Well, that's..." Natsu couldn't speak about it but Kirei continued nonetheless his reasoning.

"We, magi are a bunch of people who will do whatever it takes to achieve our goals..." He soon changed the topic.

"You've heard of the news, haven't you? There have been frequent accidents relating to gas leaks all over the town. Although those incidents were just being reported as natural accidents... In reality, that is not the case. Those are just the doings of a master who make their servants far stronger by letting them feast on human souls."

What happened after that made Natsu widen his eyes in shock and disbelief.

"W-What did you just say?!"

"For people like that, they don't actually hold any great significance on the lives of the humans. To them, they were merely tools and replenishment for their own servant's power to win the war or perhaps prolong it."

"N-No way... All this time, there were innocent people involved in this war..." Natsu was simply rattled at the revelation of the real situation around him. This is really indeed a bigger problem than he originally thought.

"This is the fifth time the Grail War had been held. It's been ten years since the last previous war had ended. And at that time, a foolish master caused a disastrous accident to which a large number of civilians had been involved and eventually suffered from it."

Hearing that, Natsu suddenly remembered something about it.

"You don't mean..."

"Yes... That incident is still fresh in the memories of the people of this city. That large fire that swooped down throughout the city and burned everything that killed hundreds of people under it."

And in just like that, memories of his self from ten years ago resurfaced in his mind. The images of people dying in the wake of the hellish nightmare before him. The people who were so helpless as they were left to burn to death. As his memories resurfaced, a stinging pain shot towards his head making him to grunt in pain, surprising Rin.

"Emiya-kun!" She ran over to him.

"So what will you do? If you still refuse to fight after hearing all of this then it's fine by me. Everyone values their own life more than anything after all.

"Cut the crap..." He muttered, still able to speak after experiencing a brief headache from his past memories.

"Hmm?"

"I... I promised to my old man that I would follow his footsteps and continue to help other people in need. I won't let anyone who are simply living their lives peacefully to be involved in this pathetic war. That's why..." He stood up as he finally found his resolve.

"I won't let that tragedy ever repeat again!"

"Well then, I acknowledge you, Emiya Natsu as the last master. I hereby declare the curtains be raised, for the Grail War has finally begun." Kirei raised both his hands up in the air as he finally announced the start of the Fifth Holy Grail War.

"Carry out your own beliefs and battle yourselves for the possession of the grail."

"If there's no more to be discussed then we're done here... Let's get going, Emiya-kun." Rin proposed before turning around towards the exit. Natsu simply looked towards her.

"S-Sure.. Wait a second, Tohsaka."

"Rejoice boy... At last your wish will be granted..." Kirei smiled deviously but it didn't faze the pinkette at all as he simply looked back towards him with a serious look.

"Didn't I tell you? I have no desire for the grail but... if ever anyone or my friends became involved. I will definitely fight for their sake.

"Then this matter is already over. Do whatever you want. I'm sure in due time, you will also desire something for the grail... I can see it, boy..."

"Hmph... Don't get your hopes up just yet... I can smell danger around you as well, Kotomine Kirei. Don't get too carried away." And with that, Natsu turned around towards the exit, slightly shocking the priest as well.

"... Emiya Natsu. This is will be interesting."

* * *

 **...**

* * *

The two finally made their outside the church. Saber was able to notice their presence as she simply unveiled her hood and ran towards him who was extremely silently for some reason.

"Master!" She called out. "Are you alright? You don't look so well."

Fortunately, he was able to snap back to reality and tended onto his servant's inquiries.

"I'm okay... Just felt a little tired after sinking all this in. Don't worry about it too much." Saber noticed his conflicted look which contradicts to his response just now. She wanted to ask but felt like she was pushing the bounds of her intrusion so she decided to not pry any further for now.

"If you say so, Master..."

Looking through the night sky, Natsu could only speak inside his mind.

 _'I would eventually desire something for the grail too, huh? What does he mean by that?'_ Even after everything that happened, he still felt troubled about what the priest had said earlier.

Is it because the grail was capable of granting any wish he desires?

Soon his mind reverted back to his own first encounter on that dire ten years ago. He had no memories of how he came into that place. He doesn't remember anything about his past at all. He couldn't remember his real parents, friends, or even his purpose.

"My past, huh?" He muttered to which it didn't go unnoticed by the blonde-haired servant.

"Is something wrong, Master?"

"I-It's nothing..." He shrugged off the thought.

For now, he had to focus on giving his best to prevent innocent people from getting involved anymore in this war. Right now, that will be his purpose to fight. He looked towards Saber with a determined look on his face.

"Saber, I'm still unwilling to join this war since I don't agree to it yet but... If I turn away right now, then more innocent people will be in danger. That's why I have decided to become a master from now on."

"Then that means..." She was cut off as Natsu finished it for her.

"Yeah... Though I might be a novice mage but I will do my best to help out, okay?" Natsu soon reached a hand between him and Saber.

At that time, Saber could only accept his offer and simply shook his hand in agreement.

"Well since all is settled, it's best we return back before sunrise. I haven't gotten much sleep over the past few days." Rin yawned lazily as she went on ahead from the two who simply followed her.

However, just as they were about to head home, a mysterious figure soon appeared out of nowhere and finally showed up infront of them.

"Hoh, so you've finally come out, onii-chan..." An unfamiliar voice was soon heard by the three as they were forced to put up their guard in caution towards the unknown figure in front of them.

There stood a petite girl with a long white hair and crimson red eyes. She appears to wear a collared, purple long-sleeved coat with a light purple scarf together with a pair of purple boots for her lower clothing. She seemed to be wearing some sort of a purple fur hat to keep her from the cold. Her skin radiated beautifully as she stood near a lamp post as if they were snow.

"Who's there?" Rin demanded.

"It's nice to meet you, onii-chan... I hope you finally readied yourself." The girl spoke. Natsu was simply baffled by the appearance of the girl in front of him.

Something feels wrong with this girl as if she was doing something dangerous. Her scent is very disturbing as he could tell that she's bad news.

"Who are you?"

"I'm Illya... Illyasviel von Einzbern. I'm sure you would understand that if I gave you my full name, Tohsaka Rin..." She looked towards the twin-haired magus who simply widen her eyes in shock upon recognizing the last name of the girl.

"What did you say?"

However, Illya simply ignored Rin's question as she looked over to Saber and Natsu with a confident look with the former raising up her sword towards the girl.

"Shall we get started, onii-chan?"

* * *

 **A/N: And stop! I think this will wrap the second chapter. Next chapter will be Illya and Natsu clashing. Sadly, this part of the chapter was close to canon-like with a little changes with Natsu's reaction and actions towards the Grail War.**

 **So I lied to you guys... I said a month but I posted it in mere days. Reason: Extremely motivated. That's all. But also, I had to go back now to that schedule eventually since school work is piling up.**

 **See you again next chapter and thank you all for your opinions for this story. I'm very fired up in writing this. I'll be also updating the other stories as well so please wait for a bit longer, alright?**

 **That's all for now. See ya on the next chappy...!**

 **\- wiErD SpeCtrumz blacking out... ... ...**


	3. Release of the Flames

**A/N: Hello guys, I'm back again with another chapter. Hope you guys enjoy it!**

 **Now let's see how this chapter will go regarding Illya's appearance in the story.**

 **Have Fun and Happy Reading!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own FS/N and FT... Type-Moon and Hiro Mashima owns them respectively.**

* * *

 **\- Release of the Flames -**

The night had been eerily quiet throughout the hour. The residents in this part of the neighborhood had all slept within their homes. Not single soul is seen from the streets and even the alleyways. It was a literal definition of a ghost town... or some might say. Cars cannot be seen from a mile away as if the whole place cleared off all presence for the night's introduction.

Saber wielded her invisible sword as she stood in front of the two magi, leaping out to their view as their sign of assurance against danger. In the midst of their encounter, the last name of the snow-haired girl rather surprised her. To the point that she initially thought her eyes were deceiving her after a long time of waiting for the next opportunity to take part in this another Holy Grail War, only to witness a somehow nostalgic encounter with a younger version of her former companion from her long past memories.

However, she suppressed her eager expression and displayed herself calmly like a proud knight she was. Right now, it doesn't seem like she carried any feeling of trust if not for the heavy atmosphere felt around her back, as if something was standing in it that gives off that kind of unpleasantness.

To her left, Natsu had to look towards Rin as he was entirely clueless about the whole exchange. While not noticing the sudden stillness of the wind around them, the other two had been up on their guard facing the petite young girl.

"Umm... Rin, who are the Einzberns?" He asked as dumb as he looked, only for it to be answered through her bitter looking face directed towards the girl.

"They are a family of magi who also desired the Holy Grail for quite some time... They always send a master in every Grail War just for that purpose."

Natsu had no idea about the relationship of both Rin and the Einzbern girl judging from the impassive look on the twin-tailed girl's face. It seems like there's been a history between their families that made the latter to make such an impression at first glance. Nevertheless, that's not what concerns both of them as of now. "So wait... Does that mean that little girl is a master?"

"Yeah, naturally." She concluded.

Illya, having to overhear their conversation, decided to intervene. "That's right. Onii-chan..."

She smiled innocently as she twirled her white skirt in sort of a cute way if not for the next few statements that came afterwards. "But you know, there is something that I've been looking forward aside from winning this Grail War... That is to kill you, onii-chan."

Pretty sure that wasn't suppose to fit in to her kind of character... But nevertheless, Natsu just felt a chill up from his spine, knowing how her words were directed at him. For a moment there, he thought that shel would not be anything harmful to them until remembering she's also a master just like him.

 _'W-What the hell is wrong with this kid? I haven't done anything wrong now did I?'_

Aside from wanting to know the reason behind her wish to kill him, Natsu tried to ask as he simply had no idea how it came into that point.

Never in his life had met the kid and did something bad to her. And that would've been really... really bad in terms of the law imposed in this peaceful town.

"U-Uhh... You must be referring to the wrong person... Surely, it's not me that you wanted to kill, right?" He asked though Illya could only giggle in delight as she felt herself amused by his stuttering nature.

"Nope, you're the one I've been wanting to kill for such a long time. But killing you instantly here would be plain boring so I'll just do it gently, alright?" She smiled with a light tone of her voice while declaring a deviously sounding phrase which only then gave him the sense of danger that's been bothering the other two ever since she appeared from the distance. The air went even heavier, as if a monster was about to emerge from beneath the ground from where they stand.

Rin noticed this and it didn't take a long time for her to figure out what kind of servant Illya had summoned.

"Master, stay behind me..." Saber ordered as she simply raised her sword pointed towards the white-haired girl, noticing the same pressure coming from the girl as well.

"Oh, it would seemed like you finally summoned your Servant. Then, I'll summon mine as well... Come forth Berserker!" She raised her right hand in the air as a colossal man mysteriously appeared behind her, causing Rin to gape her eyes in disbelief.

Natsu made sure he rubbed his eyes twice as he examined the statue-like giant standing beside Illya. Its body structure are extremely built, judging from its muscular appearance and appears to have a scraggly black hair hung around its head. Red crimson eyes glowed from it as it growled menacingly towards the three in hostility. A breath-like maddened response came from the servant, as if it was cursed or something.

Just by its threatening presence, it rightly deserves its namesake. At the same time, the dread overwhelming the atmosphere became clearer.

Natsu and Rin were shocked at the sight of the unknown Servant before them.

"Emiya... We better be careful on this one.. It's Berserker, one of the classes chosen by the Grail. They possess an immense strength and are very violent to even control." She warned.

"So it's one of the servants aside from Saber, huh? She can take care of it, right?" He asked, asking for an assurance but Rin's serious face betrayed the thought.

"I'm not so sure about that... It's true that Saber is a master swordsman but..." She paused as she darter her eyes to Berserker once again. Although it would seemed like a normal type of the same class, she had yet to witness its own power against them. As the class that bears the highest power output, she must not underestimate it.

"Go crush them, Berserker!" Illya didn't waste any time as she began her own offensive strike towards Natsu and Rin. At her words, the giant leaped out like its weight bear nothing against the force it needed to lift the body into the air as Berserker easily closed the distance between them and her. Small tremors were felt as the rampant servant burst forth like a speeding bullet, causing them to fall into disbelief.

"Stand back, Master!" Saber interrupted as she moved in front and met up with Berserker's giant blade. Sparks flew as both Saber and Berserker clashed their weapons, generating powerful shockwaves that blew everything around them. Natsu and Rin had to eventually hold unto themselves to prevent from being blown away in the process. At the same time, this is actually the first time the two had witness a full fight of Servants.

Eventually, dust settled but the fight wasn't over as Berserker begins his rampage against Saber who simply parried along with his massive and deadly swings. A large looking blade was seen in its hand as the servant swung down vertically at Saber in full force.

The golden knight feinted the block of her sword by lightly positioning it diagonally above her. A booming sound of steel echoed in the dead air as Saber lowered her sword, effectively lessening the burden of the force implied at the attack and drew herself sideways, spinning gracefully before preparing her counter attack at the unguarded giant.

A deadly slash would inflict some serious injury to any servant once they touched her sword. However, as inhumane as it would have it, Saber widened her eyes as Berserker forced itself to lift its mighty sword with its power alone, quickly raising it just in time before her sword could reach through its skin. Sparks flew as the two servants had close once again into a power struggle against its other.

A moment of shock ran through the swordswoman as she couldn't believe that the servant was able to match her agility. This is not just an ordinary Berserker.

Both servants resorted to their superhuman strengths as they clashed each other in a matter of seconds before disappearing into a silver blur and clashed once again.

...

On the other hand, the two masters that stood a fair distance away from the fight, observed the match in astonishment.

 _'Even Berserker could display such an impressive speed?! That's impossible! Does that even qualify as a Berserker?!'_ Rin could only widen her eyes in disbelief.

Natsu on the other hand, was simply using his own eyes to trace their movements everytime they parried against each other. Yet somehow, their speed and agility were too fast for his eyes to follow.

"A-Amazing..." He remarked. But just as he was observing the fight, he heard a relay message from Saber inside his mind that urged him to run away at this moment.

And in just like that, Rin immediately grabbed his hand and began to sprint away from the battle as if her intuition on Saber's telekinetic response to him is on point.

"W-Wait! What about Saber?!" He said.

"We're getting away from here. We'll be only a burden if we stay around with them. Saber is the strongest when it comes of close-combat and she can take care of herself when the time for her to retreat is right. On the other hand, we had to retreat temporarily and try to think up a plan to defeat Berserker."

Without looking back, she continued to drag Natsu out of the battlefield but they were stopped as Illya descended in front of them.

"It must be very thoughtless to just leave your opponent behind... If any honorable warrior was treated the same, it's quite rude, you know." Illya smirked.

"Illyasviel..." Rin gritted her teeth.

"Were you planning to form up a strategy or something? Because no matter what you do, Berserker won't lose since he was Heracles after all." Knowing the real identity of her servant, Rin could not help but widen her eyes in shock.

"Heracles?! You don't mean..." She was stopped as Illya continued.

"You remember this too, Rin. The existence of the heroes as spirits are influenced on the recognition of their status by the people on this time era. So basically, if the name of the hero is widely known across the world, there's no doubt that he'll become stronger than that of his class."

"You make it sound like he's more popular than Saber, huh? Really?" Natsu butted in while clicking his tongue in irritation which also caused the tense atmosphere to break between the two female magi and looked back at him with scornful looks.

"Take this seriously, Emiya-kun!" Rin shouted.

"A-Anyway, there's no way Berserker will lose to ones like Saber... To him, she's just a small fry not worth dealing with." Illya declared.

"You still haven't seen them in action... Saber is the best card class among the seven. She couldn't possibly-"

Rin was interrupted once again as a powerful shockwave was emitted near their vicinity, causing them to cover themselves from the small debris flying everywhere. Natsu recovered himself as he glanced over to the shockwave, only to see Saber struggling to fight against the enemy servant on equal footing. Her armor had already received scratches from her crash and her forehead was starting to bleed down to her left eye.

She gritted in frustration as she used her sword to stand up and face the giant servant once again.

"Saber!" Natsu could only yell in worry.

"Ma...Master."

Illya could only laugh inwardly as she could see the helplessness of her enemies before her. As expected, she should've attacked a bit more later since they're nothing more but prey to her. But either way, she'll have to end it in order to finish this battle once and for all and finally kill Natsu with her own very hands.

"Fufu... Not the strongest class anymore, Saber..."

Rin could not help but to speculate the battle in complete distraught. It's impossible for Saber to be overwhelmed and sustained such a dangerous blow from that. But there's still a chance to turn this around. She narrowed her eyes as she began to focus her magic to communicate with Archer who was situated on a far away distance, presumably on a tower, waiting for orders.

 _"Archer... You know what to do.. Is your position ready?"_

 _"Yeah. I'll leave the timing to you however... My wound from Saber's sword earlier hasn't been fully recovered. This one shot will be pushing off my limits."_

 _"Sigh*... ... So you can't take anymore shots than this?"_

 _"I'm afraid so..."_

 _"Very well, we'll think of something. We'll attack at the same time..."_

After discussing their plans, Rin placed forth her hand towards Illya as she began to glow forth her magical power as a big red orb of magic begins to form around it. Natsu watched as Rin fires up a red beam towards Illya though it was easily deflected with her own hands as well.

"Hmph.. Attacking me with petty spells... Please fight me a bit more seriously, Rin."

"Don't get so full of yourself, Illyasviel!" Rin shouted before looking back at the far direction where Archer was.

"ARCHER! NOW!"

As she shouted, Archer finally shot his own attack from his bow that simply zoomed past the buildings in a blink of a second, reaching towards Illya in such blinding speed. The white-haired girl widen her eyes in shock as the attack from behind was already imminent.

What resulted after that was a explosion as Archer's attack seemingly found its mark. Dust and magic particles kick up the air, obscuring the area where the white-haired girl once stood.

Natsu and the others waited for it to settle down as both were looking suspiciously at the smokescreen.

 _"Did we hit her?"_ Rin could only guess as she continued to watch the unfolding event.

But as the smoke dissipated, Natsu and the others could only widen their eyes in disbelief as they found Berserker beside Illya, completely unscathed and managed to protect her in the nick of time.

"Ahahaha! Berserker will always be the strongest... Not even your Archer's attack can damage him." Illya chuckled evilly.

"T-That's impossible! He managed to cross that distance in just a moment?" Rin stuttered in disbelief, looking at the fiel where the supposed servant was currently at which was a couple of meters away from them.

"Like I said, as long as Berserker is here, I cannot lose. Finish that annoying pest first, Berserker!" Illya pointed her finger towards Rin who was simply undefended and helpless to avoid the situation.

She cannot use Archer anymore since the last shot was the only support she could get. If only he didn't sustain such an injury from Saber then, she could've provided some help together with the two. However, her thoughts were simply closed as Berseker appeared right before her and began to swing its giant blade above her, seemingly cutting her open.

She closed her eyes as she waited for her death... yet nothing came.

 ***CLANG***

Sounds of metal colliding into one another was the only thing she could hear as she opened her eyes and widen in alarm as Saber managed to save her by blocking the attack. However, she seemed to have found herself in the middle of a power struggle once again as Berserker tries to overpower her with brute force while she tries return with the same force.

Saber could only grunt in pain as she could feel the pressure being forced upon her body by Berserker as it continues to overpower her with its strength alone. Her injuries are also posing a problem for her. Though she's able to patch them up, there's not much time for her to regenerate herself as she was in the middle of the battle. She can't necessarily do things at the same time. Not to mention, she couldn't get any magic from Natsu's body as he was a novice mage after all.

...

Natsu was starting to get worried over Saber's well-being. Tohsaka and Archer's attack failed and Saber's fighting prowess is not connecting either to the powerful beast before them. At this rate, they're both gonna die from him.

Is there any other way to defeat this monster?

He cursed himself for being so weak... He declared himself that he will fight but all he can do it watch and see his comrades hurt in front of him without doing anything to save them.

 _Why...? Why am I so weak?_

It was then Saber was eventually overpowered and was slammed once again towards the concrete, making her to cough up blood as she couldn't take any more hits than her current state. Her strength was dwindling minute by minute as she struggled to get back on his feet.

Natsu finally witnessed this. He saw her posture as she struggles to stand up with the help of her invisible sword. Her body was shaking from the constant clashes of the weapons as if it rattled her to the bone. Yet she still struggled to stand up. Blood was starting drip from her forehead once again as some of her injuries had opened despite being a servant.

"If this goes on, Saber wouldn't last..." Even Rin could see that Saber isn't in good shape. At this rate, the strongest card would be easily opted out of the war and that's just the start of it seeing that she and Archer are most likely the next ones who will be targeted by the girl.

"SABER!" Natsu screamed out in worry as the golden-haired swordswoman stood up yet again despite her wounds.

"Ma...Master. . . . . . .Ru... Run away." She muttered as Berserker had stood in front of her. Its right hand raised above its head along with its weapon, seemingly preparing his final blow on her which prompted the pinkette to sprint fast towards them.

"Emiya-kun, what are you doing?!" Rin called out in horror as Natsu went ahead in the battle, trying to save Saber from the deadly swing.

Grabbing a small pipe from his hand, he utilized his reinforcement magic to strengthen the structure of the pipe itself. As Saber awaits her imminent death, Natsu came in front of her before meeting the giant blade with his pipe instead of her.

However, the force was so strong that it simply sent Natsu away a few meters away from her, shocking both Saber and Rin.

"NATSU!"

Illya was slightly confused at his futile actions but then her eyes slightly widened as she saw the boy slowly getting back up from the crash.

"Impossible... You shouldn't be even moving at all." She expressed her slight distraught but at the same time, reassured at the situation not changing despite his unexpected actions. However, her interest grew slightly higher for the boy as her eyes finally redirected towards him, prompting the servant to turn towards him as well.

"W-What's wrong? Can't even defeat one human even though you're a servant? Heh, you make me laugh..." Natsu taunted to which Illya was angered by it and eventually changed her plans. His bloodied hands shake tremendously, holding the pipe barely as he could just to get its attention.

"Berserker... Get him first!" The giant servant could only roar wildly.

"Come at me you big brute..." He mocked before raising the pipe to guard the incoming attack.

"Master! Run! You can't defeat a servant on you own.. L-Let me handle it." Saber struggled to get back on her knees as she tried to rush over to the pinkette but it was too late. She could see him that he has no means of escaping and tried to face the servant head-on with that frail body of his.

Soon, Berserker tried to make a powerful right swing from his giant blade to cut the boy open as he neared at him with rage.

He roared as he proceeds to kill him to which Natsu performed a blocking stance to prevent himself from being cut open.

Unfortunately, his strength is not equal to that of Berserker as he was simply flung away by the giant sword as if he was simply flicked away like a bug. He screamed in pain as blood gushed out from his mouth after crashing into a brick wall that seemingly destroyed most of his bones.

"MASTER!" Saber could only shout in horror as her master's body was simply reduced into a lifeless figure after that deadly crash.

Her eyes however, widen themselves in shock as Natsu had once again rose up from his feet, facing Berserker once again despite his grave wounds. Even Rin was shocked at the durability of his body from that blow.

No human would able to survive that kind of attack twice and would eventually die from it. Seeing that their bodies are frail and weak, it's a given fact that a force of a hit from a Heroic Spirit is not something to be taken with confidence and determination. However, her eyes deceived her as she saw him standing up to his feet like it was nothing with his dirtied hair shadowing his expression. They could also sense his heavy breathing as he tried to gather up some air signifying his weariness in battle.

"Hoh, so you're still able to stand up even after that, Onii-chan. It would've been boring if you died easily. I already told you before didn't I? I will enjoy my time killing you slowly. I'm sure you can take more like you did a few times earlier, right?" Ilya smirked evilly as she looked over to Berserker who simply stood beside her, awaiting her orders.

The two girls are merely ignored, seeing that they unable to fight.

"Berserker... Make Onii-chan suffer but don't kill him just yet." She clarified as Berserker returned a roar before trudging his way towards the wounded pinkette.

"Damn you, your opponent is me, Berserker! Stay away from my master!" Saber tried to dash herself towards the giant servant with little power she got but he simply backhanded the female knight with his left hand that sent her away from the battlefield.

"Saber...! Why you little-

Rin tried to shoot some magical beam from her hands to stop Illya but was easily deflected by herself before flashing a taunting grin towards her.

"You should be careful around on whom you're trying to kill, Rin. Or you don't want to end up like Saber..." The Einzbern girl warned.

"You don't have the right to order me around..." She hissed.

"Well, that true but I can just to dispose you in order to prevent my plans from being ruined." Illya soon swiped her hand and generated a large gale of wind that forced Rin back as she struggled to hold her own.

As she was doing that, a pipe was soon thrown towards the white-haired girl, prompting the Servant to guard Illya despite the least danger it imposed to her. She looked towards the injured pinkette who was holding out one of his shoulders with his other arm for support. It was clear that he was trying to divert her attention away from the two and into him only. His one and only weapon was long gone the moment he threw it towards them.

"I-I'm not done yet... You said that you'll enjoy killing me... So cut the crap and come at me already!" Natsu declared to which Illya could only chuckle comfortably under her breath.

"You're really are persistent aren't you? Very well, I'll grant your wish, onii-chan." Illya spoke as she ordered Berserker to finish him off for good.

Saber and Rin were simply left to watch in horror as Berserker begins his final blow towards Natsu with one deadly swing from his blade.

Knowing that he had no more weapons to fight, Natsu could only watch as the blade before him neared unto him which slowly brings his imminent death. With blood still flowing out from his wounds, his body weaken and he simply prepared himself.

But just as Berserker was about to cut him down, a red ethereal sphere soon appeared around Natsu as the blade descends upon him. The sphere itself clashed with Berserker's blade sending off powerful shockwaves that shocked the three, including Illya as well.

"W-What is happening?" Illya could only ask in dismay as the sphere protected Natsu completely from her servant. Not only that, even Berserker was having a hard time breaking through to the barrier itself which left Saber and Rin to wonder what just happened.

Natsu was also shocked at first as he felt completely safe around the sphere however, his attention soon glanced over to his scaly scarf which mysteriously glowed in crimson red similar to the color of the sphere surrounding him.

 _"M-My.. scarf...? H-How in the world?"_

The scarf continued to glow in red as Berserker repeatedly made brutal strikes upon him but to no avail. A series of brutal swings but the sphere didn't seem to budge one bit. Whatever it is, it's not just a simple magic protection that even normal magi can summon out of thin air.

This was the first time he had seen his scarf in this state for a long time. Though it deemed to be a normal clothing, he never thought that it held a significant part in saving his life.

"What's wrong, Berserker? Hurry up and kill him already!" Illya demanded as the giant servant raged on with his deafening roar before leaping into the air to increase his momentum upon his fall to the ground.

Natsu could only shield his eyes as the blade tried to cut him down once again however, the scarf glowed more brightly as it created a powerful force that forced Berserker off his feet and eventually was sent away towards a car as he crashed into it. Illya widen her eyes in shock as she couldn't believe that Berserker was easily lifted away despite his enormous size.

"Berserker!" She rushed over to the downed servant and looked cautiously at Natsu who was still dumbfounded of what happened.

"Why you... You'll pay for that! Berserker, one more time!" She ordered as her servant emerged from the debris and simply launch himself towards him once again.

The glowing of his scarf eventually faded unlike the time that it had saved him earlier. He could only assume that it won't save him a second time. He had to fight back but how? He had no power or any magic that could help him to match that giant monstrosity. Gritting his teeth in frustration, Natsu stood up wearily as he clutched unto his shoulder due to his injury.

"Master! Run away!" Saber could only shout in worry.

"Kill him! Berserker!"

As the screams of both his enemies and allies rang into his ears, his mind suddenly went black as if his connection to the real world had been severed. The blackness simply surrounded him as he could not see any faint of color from anywhere except its absence.

...

 _"What the...? What's going on?! Where am I?"_

He tried to speak but he couldn't as he was forced to speak inside his mind.

 _"Am I dead?! Is this how death looks like?"_

Looking around the endless plain of darkness, Natsu could not help but feel worried about what happened earlier. He remembered the last time he was being attacked by Berserker many times. He suffered many life-threatening injuries and was mysteriously spared by his scarf and then, he instantly saw this vast dark world.

He soon felt a strong gust of wind that caused him to shield his eyes protectively as he stood his ground.

 **RRRRROOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRR***

A terrifying roar soon boomed inside his ears that forced him to wobble in pain as it continues to roar even louder as if it was very near. Its sound must be that of a enormous monster though he can't see anything. Soon embers and smoke appeared behind him as he turned around and saw a vast plain of flames right before him.

 _"What in the world is going on?"_ He could not help but feel disturb at the sight.

Everything was simply burned as the flames raged around the vicinity, leaving nothing but raging fires and smoking wrecks of debris. His mind soon reverted back to the event that transpired ten years ago.

Yes, it was the same as the incident where the fire sparked in the city and burned everything, including humans as well. He felt himself to be on that same past again as he was left to stare in wonder at the conflagration.

 **RRRRROOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRR***

Once again, he covered his ears protectively as another monstrous roar penetrated through the air from the above which prompted him to look up and eventually widen his eyes in shock and disbelief as he couldn't believe of what he saw.

There lies a giant creature with its giant tipped wings spread widely around it with four limbs with multiple sharp claws present in each of them. The belly was binge in color as the rest was simply covered in red crimson scales that further showed its terrifying appearance to the anyone's eyes. Its neck sported a series of jagged scale spikes that is located above it and a triangular head with three horns in each side. A set of huge canines was seen in its mouth as it glared over to the black horizon before roaring again that made Natsu to stagger.

He wanted to run but was too frightened to even move. He can't even express his utter disbelief that he could only stare at it speechless.

Though far away, the creature soon looked towards his direction, showing off its yellow sclera orbs that scared Natsu to death. Knowing that it probably spotted him, he knew that it had caught its attention. Running away from it would've been pointless since a human can possibly outrun such a giant beast. All he could do is wait and pray that it wouldn't do anything dangerous.

Natsu fell back on his knees as he was left to stare at the giant creature before him. With the creature too near for him, he was able to distinguish what kind of creature he was actually facing.

 _"A... A dragon...?"_

Upon saying that inside his thoughts, the dragon simply inhaled its snout as flames gathered around it as if he was collecting them for something.

And without a moment to act, it breathed out a huge streams of flames towards his direction that caused him raised his hands, widening his eyes in shock as the hot flames filled his vision right in front of him. He prepared himself at his imminent death. However, he did not feel any pain or burn from his body. Instead, the flames simply gathered around him and eventually seeped into his own body as if he was unconsciously absorbing it.

Just before then, the dragon soon took flight and disappeared into the darkness as Natsu was left confusion before a shriek of pain shot over his head that forced him out of the dark plane and eventually returned back to the real world.

* * *

 **...**

* * *

Berserker raised his weapon as he neared over to the pinkette who had his face shadowed by his hair, completely unaware of the emotion he was currently having.

Saber and Rin could not help but watch helplessly as they couldn't do anything to stop the relentless servant.

A vertical slash swung down in fast speeds as the blade neared the pinkette's head.

Just as the giant servant was about to cut him in half, Natsu simply grabbed his giant blade mid-way which caused a huge shockwave around him and also shocking both sides. The edge of the blade didn't even cause any wound on his hand, as if he caught like it was nothing. A soundless shock occupied everyone's faces as soon as they witnessed it.

Berserker tried to force his way unto him with his sword but Natsu had seemingly stopped his attack by holding through his weapon, refusing to let go in the process. Illya hid her astonishment but at the same time, gritted her teeth in frustration as she could not believe of what she was seeing.

"What's wrong, Berserker? Hurry up and cut him!"

Berserker roared yet again before forcing another ounce of his superhuman strength unto the boy but it still won't budge.

"W-What the? What are you?!" Illya demanded, seeing how many surprises the pinkette had shown towards her this night.

After a few seconds, Natsu's body was soon engulfed in flames as Berserker was forced to jump out of the way due to the intensity of the heat surrounding him. Saber and Rin stared in surprise as the flames coated around him however gaped further in shock as the said flames didn't actually burned him in the process as his clothes were seen intact despite being surrounded by it. An enormous powerful magic surge soon erupted from his body as flames danced around him and eventually spread themselves around, reducing everything into a smoking wreck.

The two couldn't help but stand on the spot as the wounds inflicted on him easily closed. Rin, in particular, was shocked by this turn of events, seeing it first time that a human had just performed a fast regeneration which was something that magi have studied on acquiring it. The level of magic presented before her wasn't anything modern nor ancient.

It's a magic completely unknown to them.

...

On the other hand, Illya took a step back as the flames grew violently around the pinkette, prompting Berserker to stan beside her as they stared at him, glaring in anger.

"You're gonna pay for hurting my comrades..." He growled at them before releasing an amount of flames from his body as it created some sort of a pillar of hellfire that was seen by Archer into distance.

"B-Berserker... Get him!" Not knowing what kind of enemy she was facing, Illya desperately commands her servant to attack who simply roared again and sprinted himself towards the pinkette.

"Don't get too cocky, you bastard!" Natsu glared before locking his right fist in flames as he began to counter his attack.

 **"Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!"** Shouting briefly a spell that no one had understood, Natsu collided his fist towards Berserker's blade that instantly generated a powerful explosion in the vicinity as Saber, Rin and Illya were forced to shield their eyes from the dust.

Without waiting for the commotion to settle down, Natsu and Berserker engaged themselves in a parrying duel with one battling it out with brute force. They both disappeared into a silver blur as they simply left a trail of booming shockwaves from their intense clash. Any untrained eye could see only just that.

Meanwhile, Saber and Rin were astonished at the display of speed and power that both sides were using, especially to Natsu himself. They never actually thought that he was capable of standing out his own against a servant.

 _"He was fighting a servant alone?! That's purely suicidal yet he was able fight all by himself against that monster. Just what are you, Emiya Natsu?"_ Rin was only amazed by it much as the same as Saber who was completely dumbfounded at the sudden change of her master.

She never encountered a human being able to take on a servant on equal footing yet here she was, standing in awe as Natsu delivered a powerful elbow towards Berserker as he was pummeled once again to the ground.

As the two were observing, the two fighters continue to battle themselves as both resorted to deadly blows that resulted shockwaves whenever their attacks made contact with each other.

However, in the midst of the fight, Berserker was able to make an opening as he landed his powerful swing to Natsu with his blade towards his stomach that sent him straight into a nearby wall and crashed, kicking up dust and rubble as a result.

Saber and Rin shielded their eyes as they stood their ground from the impact and also shown signs of worry about the pinkette.

Illya breath a sigh of relief as she managed to knock the boy out of the way. His sudden change in fighting prowess greatly surprised her. It was not her observation that he has that kind of power to match up to her servant. This was certainly above her expectations. Not only that, she can see that Berserker had a hard time matching against him in combat, as if his strength was purely matched to that of a demi-god.

A gale soon erupted from the crash as the white-haired girl turned around to see Natsu emerging from the debris, completely unscathed from the blow earlier.

"N-No way... There's no way you could survive that attack just now!" Illya shouted in disbelief as she began to take step back in fear of the pinkette.

Just then, Natsu simply went into a stance before gathering up air around his mouth as he both took a huge inhalation of air with streams of flames spiraling towards him. Illya narrowed her eyes in alarm as Natsu took one last glance before finally charging up his own spell as well.

 **"Fire Dragon's Roar!"**

Another unknown spell was invoked. A large stream of flames was soon shot out from his mouth towards Illya who could only widen her eyes in shock as she was left to shield herself with the help of Berserker from its intensity. Small debris and rubble instantly evaporated as the sea of fire blew past the two enemies which can be seen from far away.

It took a few moments for it to die down as it revealed an unscathed Berserker with steam forming up from his body due to the intensity of the flames itself. Saber and Rin could only blink their eyes for a second as the vicinity to where the flames went through were simply reduced to a smoking path.

"He...He breathed out fire?" Saber could only stutter as she continued to watch from the sides.

"This is bad, Saber. The fight is escalating and we could probably attract some unwanted attention if this drags on..." Rin spoke beside her in worry.

"Then what do you propose we do?"

"We gotta stop Natsu..." Just as she finished her statement, she felt another relay message coming over to her as Archer had began to speak from afar.

 _"Rin. Tell everyone to get clear from the area as far as possible..."_

 _"Eh? What do you mean get clear?"_

 _"I can see the fight from here and I'm impressed by the boy's power to stand up to that creature but it is not enough... Tell Saber to get clear as soon as possible. I'm just gonna give the boy a little treat."_

 _"Huh? What are you talking about?"_

Without giving her time to reply back, Archer simply cut off his communication as he began to hold out his right hand before him and summoned a drill-shaped sword before placing it in his bow. He drew the bow into its maximum strength as red sparks soon erupted around him. Magic waves soon followed the bow began to glow more in color as Archer locked his target unto Berserker.

Meanwhile, Rin tried to connect back to Archer but it seems like he's not answering any longer. She gritted her teeth towards a building and could not help but slightly angered by him.

What does he mean get clear? Is he planning to blow up an entire neighborhood?

She opened her eyes widely as she finally saw a strange blue light coming from the top of the building and could not help but run into Saber and grabbed her hand to get themselves away from the incoming blast.

"What are you doing?"

"We're clearing out of here. Archer is doing something incredibly stupid... Does he know what he was doing?"

Saber could only look at the horizon and instantly saw Archer readied his bow to which it was locked unto both Berserker and Natsu. It took her a few seconds to realize of what he was currently up to this time.

"I gotta go back for Master!" She tried to break away from Rin.

"Don't be stupid... You're gonna get caught in the blast!"

"If master dies, then I'll die too... It's my duty to protect him at all cost... I pledge myself to do just that!"

She tried to rush back towards Natsu but a strange light soon erupted from the tower from afar as it formed into some kind of ball of light that instantly made its way towards Berserker. Saber looked at the pinkette in extreme worry as she saw his own body still unmoving from his current position before a ray of light soon engulfed him and Berserker before turning into an enormous explosion that sent both Saber and Rin away from the vicinity.

But after a few moments, both sides soon heard a slurping sound as the explosion soon began to wane in a seemingly fast pace before spiraling around into one place, negating its blast in the neighborhood. Saber shielded her eyes before widening them in surprise as she saw Natsu inhaling the explosion itself.

It was kinda strange to see but she could see him, trying to engulf the explosion into his mouth as if he was containing it. Archer was soon left taken aback as he could see the pinkette easily negated one of his Phantasms.

"Wha...What is happening?" Rin could only ask in confusion as the pinkette finally swallows up most of of the contents of the explosion. The neighborhood was saved but all eyes were prying over to the pinkette who simply wiped away his mouth before looking back towards the shocked Illya with a confident look.

"Thanks for the meal... I'm all fired up!" Shouting out his declaration, Natsu soon bursts flames around his body as he began his own attack towards Berserker.

But just he was about to attack, Illya soon jumped up towards Berserker's shoulder before finally ceasing her hostility towards Natsu and the others.

"Let's stop here for now, onii-chan... You already shown me a handful of surprises. Even though as a master, I will not blindly go into a battle without knowing the power of an enemy." Hearing her say that, the flames around Natsu simply died down and began to look suspiciously towards her.

"Are you running away?"

"Don't mistake me. I know when to back down from a fight I couldn't win but wouldn't be a good idea if we stop this right now. It's already moving to sunrise and it will be a matter of time before someone finds out about our fight. You know what happens to innocent people if they were dragged into this war, right?" Illya reasoned though Natsu is not yet convinced. In response, he could only click his tongue in irritation.

"Oh don't worry. We can always have fun some other time, onii-chan." Illya paused. "After all, even if we wanted to last the fight, Berserker would've won eventually."

"..."

And in just like that, Illya and Berserker began to walk away as they chose to retreat from the battle. Saber and Rin were simply dumbfounded at the sudden change of events as they could clearly see Natsu letting them go off the hook.

Soon afterwards, the two dissipated from sight, finally ending their fight once and for all, leaving the three behind as Saber and Rin began to run over to the pinkette who was simply staring into space, thinking in deep thought.

"Master! I'm glad you're alright..." Saber smiled in relief.

"Emiya-kun, you have a lot of explaining to do once we get back to your house. What was that just now?! How are you able to do that? And why did you let those two go?" Rin flooded him with questions.

But a moment later, Natsu's body soon fell limp as it landed into the ground, shocking both Rin and Saber as they looked at his weakened body in extreme worry.

"Natsu!"

* * *

 **A/N: And that's a wrap. Sorry for a short chapter since I only featured about the fight without progressing further into the story. I'll promise to make up for the next chapter.**

 **Right now, I gave a small glimpse of the awakening of Natsu's power so there will a lot of questions among the characters about him. but I'm not hastily bringing up just now.. It will be like a beginning of something else.**

 **I've finished the plots of the story itself so it will be up to my motivation in writing to do the work. It's my way of preventing a writer's block.**

 **That's all for now and thank you guys for reading! I also wanted to thank the others for their opinions in my story. I greatly appreciated it :)**

 **See ya guys for the next chapter and don't forget to leave a review about your opinions of this story.**

 **\- wiErD SpeCtrumz blacking out... ... ...**


	4. Unprecedented Change

**A/N: Hello guys. Wassup, wiErD here. I'm back again for another chapter. First off, I wanted this story to catch up to my other crossover stories so I won't be confused choosing them down unto different chapters that's why I posted this in an early pace.**

 **That's all the announcement for today and here's chapter 4.**

 **Have Fun and Happy Reading!**

 **Disclaimer: I never own FT and FSN. All goes to their respective owners.**

* * *

 **\- Unprecedented Change -**

 _Natsu weakly opened his eyes again as his mind simply wandered again to the endless pit of darkness. It has been his second time delving into such a strange world. Though he knew that it is not really reality, he felt solemn everytime he dreamed this kind of thing._

 _"I'm here again, huh?" Natsu blankly spoke inside his thoughts as he found himself yet again in the dark world. The endless plain of darkness stretched towards everywhere as if it was completely devoid of anything._ _There are no sounds, no life and no purpose. Everything is created out of nothingness._

 _He looked around in hopes of seeing someone or something but there's none. He looked down to his hands as his own body was the only thing different around him. The darkness hadn't consumed him entirely which left him confused._

 _Then after a moment, another sea of flames soon erupted before him, causing him to land on his knees by surprise. There are no structures or life amongst the fire but he could somehow see yet again the very same dragon that he encountered back in one of his subconsciousness._

 _It stood there waiting as if it was suspended into a still-like state. It's huge yellow eyes darted over to the dark horizon, making him slightly curious._

 _"I wonder what that thing was looking at?"_

 _Without making a second thought, Natsu walked through the fire as it didn't hurt him in the process. He neared to the unmoving giant creature before finally seeing its true appearance._

 _Its scales are very tipped with each other and has sustained some huge scratches to which he could assumed to be his old wounds. A huge scar in a x-pattern was also seen in its belly while some are situated above its neck._

 _But that only shows more of its fearsome look as it continued stare towards the horizon._

 _As he examined the dragon, Natsu was taken by surprise as he soon heard it talked to the horizon with very intimidating voice that echoed throughout the darkness._

 _ **"It is time..."** Its voice rumbled as it rang into his ears that made him jolt in alarm as it begins to sprout its wings and sent a powerful gale of wind before flying once again._

 _"What the..." Natsu shielded his eyes as he stood his ground before witnessing the red dragon flying around in the flames._

 _ **"The time has come for us to act once again... Natsu."**_

 _As soon as the dragon finished its statement, Natsu widen his eyes in shock as he heard his name._

 _How in the world it knew my name? He looked towards the dragon who continued to fly around him._

 _"Who are you?! Why do you know of me?!" He shouted but his voice seemed to be restrained for unknown reasons as he was forced to speak only o his mind, looking confused as flames around him grew stronger that eventually obscured his visions._

 _Soon after, a ray of light appeared above the dark void as the pinkette was forced to shield himself from its blinding light and eventually lost the dragon. The light simply ate away the darkness as his consciousness soon returned back to the real world, cutting off his connection to his subconsciousness._

 _..._

* * *

...

Natsu slowly opened his eyes as he finally returned back to the real world. His face was slightly sweating from his recent dream earlier with that mysterious dragon. He didn't know why but somehow there is a reason of why he actually dreamed that way.

He never actually thought of dreaming something like that ever since the Grail War had started. Whatever it is, it may have something to do with his involvement in this war or rather his unknown past.

He shook his head sideways, in hopes of shoving off the thought out of his head. Now is not the time to be thinking about his past. He had to focus more about the current war. More importantly, he already noticed that something is wrong in his current situation.

Calming down, he looked around his surroundings as he managed to find himself in his futon to which he was quite confused.

"Huh? This is... ... my house." He muttered before slowly getting up from the futon before think deeply about something.

 _"If I remember right, I was in the middle of a battle with some little girl together with Rin and Sabe-_

He stopped midway as he finally put the pieces together and began to panic. That's right, he remembered the time where he was seriously injured after trying to divert the attention of Berserker from Saber and Rin to him. What happened after that was simply blank. He couldn't recall the time of how he was able to come into this point as he also doesn't remember anything beyond that point so he began to worry.

"Oh, you're awake already..." A familiar voice sounded through the sliding door as Natsu turned around only to see Rin carrying a bowl filled with lukewarm water together with a white cloth soaked under it.

"Tohsaka..." His voice trailed off in thought as he saw her sit down beside him before laying down the bowl beside her as well.

"How are you feeling?" She began to ask.

"I'm fine, I guess..." Natsu halfheartedly replied.

"Well, that's a relief. You don't have to worry about me being around. I'm still in debt to you so there's no reason for me to kill you right away after everything you've done last night." She smiled as she simply squeezed the white cloth and placed it gently on his forehead.

"I don't really feel sick right now. I think I'm quite fine on my own. You don't need to put me a cloth over my head." Natsu tried to pass her offer but she insisted.

"Ah, I'm just making sure that I'm able to help."

"..." Natsu only fell silent as he simply allowed her to do what she wants. He laid back down to the futon as Rin continued to take care of him as time passes.

"A-Anyway, don't get the wrong idea, I'm doing this because I'm trying to pay my debt to you." She clarified.

"You make it sound like that I'm a loan shark or some sort of a debt collector." Natsu deadpanned.

Silence soon followed as the two have nothing to say to each other. It took a couple minutes before Rin actually finished and eventually sat beside him.

"So how are your injuries?"

"Come on, I already told you I'm alright..." Natsu groaned.

"Don't joke around... You passed out instantly after your fight with Berserker. Saber and I had to carry you all the way back and have you healed right away." Rin spoke out in worry as she began lean closer to him.

"Eh? Did you just say I fought Berserker?" He asked, not knowing of what truly happened last night. Rin, on the other hand was surprised at his reaction.

"W-what?! You don't remember? Seriously? Even after that sudden transformation?"

"Transformation? What the hell are you talking about?" Now he's beginning to get more confused. What does she mean by transformation?

"No way... You really don't remember, do you?" She realized.

"Do I look like I really knew what happened last night? I don't really know!" Natsu screamed in irritation.

But just as he said that, a tick mark soon appeared over to the twin-tailed girl's head as she glared annoyingly at the pinkette who has the same expression.

"Oh, is that what you want? Fine then, go wash yourself, Stupid!" She stood up before moving over to the slide and opened it. At the same time, Saber who happens to be on the other side as well, also opened the door to which slightly surprised Rin.

"Saber?" She exclaimed.

"I apologize for intruding but I want to see if Master is okay..." The blonde-haired knight simply bowed formally in respect before making her way towards the room and saw Natsu finally woken up from his injuries.

"I think he's fine... Feel free to do so. I'm done with that idiot anyway." Rin shrugged her shoulders as she went past the blonde-haired knight towards the kitchen, leaving Saber slightly dumbfounded as she titled her head in confusion as she saw her murmuring something as she began to search the kitchen drawers for something.

She simply disregarded the twin-tailed girl's bad mood and went on ahead towards the room to see if Natsu is alright. She sat beside him in a formal position before looking at him briefly to check his condition. So far, he did't seem to show signs of inferiority after the last fight.

"Yo Saber... Good morning." Natsu could only pass a wave of greeting despite his current condition.

"Good morning too, Master. How is your injuries?" She asked with a slight worry.

"I'm fine... But how about you? Last time I knew, you were seriously injured in your fight with that giant servant..."

"We, servants carry self-repairing abilities for our wounds. More importantly, I was asking about your earlier because you're a human though it seemed strange for you to possess some kind of fast regenerative trait like us..." She pondered in thought.

"Is that so?"

"Well putting that aside, I have something to ask of you, Master.." She said with curiosity.

"What is it?"

Before she could even reply, a sound of cluttering utensil resounded from the kitchen, catching both of their attention to the source. Natsu simply sighed in depression as he realized that someone is messing up with his house..

"Honestly, what is she up to now? That Tohsaka..." Natsu grumbled as he stood up from his futon and walked towards the sliding door.

"Is it alright for you to move around like that? You still haven't recovered much from the fight even though your injuries are healed." Saber could only ask in worry but Natsu only flashed a reassuring smile towards her.

"Don't worry... I'm fine already." And with that he went ahead to which Saber hastily followed from behind.

They walked through the kitchen, only to see Rin rummaging into kitchen drawers and closets. Natsu and Saber eventually came into view as they peered from the kitchen and saw her trying to search for something. Both looked at each other in confusion until the pinkette decided to speak.

"Uhh... What are you looking for, Tohsaka?"

"I'm looking for some tea bags... What kind of house is this that does not have something like that?" She complained before finally giving her search as she looked at the pinkette for answers.

"It's right over their in the upper-right drawer... Careful not to break anything..."

Rin simply nodded as she walked over to the drawer and picked out some several tea bags based on her choosing and simply went on the table.

"Well, I'll try to make some breakfast for us all." He proposed but was cut short by Rin who began to speak.

"We can do that later... Right now, we need to reassess our situation about last night's battle..." She said in a serious expression. Saber could only nod firmly at her suggestion as she simply went over to the table and sat across her while Natsu reluctantly complied as he sat beside the female knight.

..

..

It didn't take a few seconds for them to speak first as Rin finally began her conversation.

"So, I guess we should start by knowing the conclusion of the fight with that Einzbern girl last night..."

"Yeah, I remember that. So Tohsaka, what happened last night?" Natsu asked curiously.

Rin made a deep breath before sighing afterwards before speaking. She drank her cup for a moment before putting it down and returned to their topic.

"The fight was left unsettled... Saber is wounded, Archer ran out of magic and Illyasviel is confused about your sudden change in that fight which led her to retreat alongside with her servant."

"Well isn't that a good thing.. I mean, if she retreated then she gave us time to recover as well." Natsu reasoned.

"That's true on one point but it seems like Illyasviel had taken an interest to you Emiya-kun..." Rin pondered in thought.

"What do you mean by that?"

"For you to be able to stand up alone against a servant would really piqued her interest of course. No other human being was able to stand toe-to-toe on a servant... A Berserker class no less. It would also seemed that her servant Berserker isn't just some normal Heroic Spirit so it's quite understandable that she had to retreat and obtain a proper observation on her enemy's powers."

"But I don't really know what I did back there... I simply acted out of instinct to fight that thing." Natsu meekly replied before looking at his hands in solemn thought.

Saber and Rin could look at him as he felt troubled about his situation last night. This sudden change of events had him confused for awhile now since everything seems to be happening so fast right in front of him. What's more is that he still had that dream to worry about. Not that he wanted to tell them about it. It's best that keeps it to himself in order not worry the others as well. And even is he did told that, they won't probably get some answers since it was completely unrelated.

"Well, I guess it's fine either way... It probably proves that you have potential as a magus." Rin spoke nonchalantly.

"There is also a matter of the nature of your powers, Natsu..." She continued.

"My powers?" A nod soon followed.

"Aside from your usage of Reinforcement magic, it would also seem like that you had the magic to manipulate fire. That is considered to be one of the advanced type of spells, you know... Controlling an element of nature is something that a magus would take years of practice to master. In your case, you probably had some knowledge on how to use them, am I right?" She asked curiously.

"Probably..." He muttered, still unconvinced.

"Are you sure that you're really a novice mage?" Rin asked suspiciously, her eyes darted only towards him with anticipation.

"I-I told you already I'm not that skilled with magic... I don't even know that I actually knew all this... It just came to me in a brief of a moment."

"It can't be proved that you somehow got them from Saber due to your incomplete summoning and she probably don't have any ability to control fire... So that leads only to your own self..."

"Yes, that is true... I don't possess the same abilities that Master displayed last night that's why I'm also curious about it." Saber nodded in agreement as she joined in the conversation as well.

"Then what about my injuries? How did they get healed so fast?" Natsu asked.

"Well it maybe because of your incomplete summoning that the channel between you and her somehow got jumbled up and eventually got this kind of unusual result." Rin deduced.

"I see... so in the end, Saber saved me again, huh. Sorry." Natsu frowned before looking to his cup in deep thought.

"If you're going to apologize, then you should do it for that thing last night." Rin clarified.

"Eh?"

"About what you did last night... Although you did well against Berserker, you shouldn't rush in and challenge servants so easily. Servants are meant to be the key in battling with other servants and masters are the only ones who can support them, not take their place to obtain the Holy Grail... Fighting them on your own is purely suicidal. We're just lucky that girl had changed her mind about slaughtering us... and eventually took an interest at you."

"I-Is that so? I only did it to protect my friends... What's wrong with that?"

"I admire your determination, Master but in times like these, you should always think about your own life as well..." Saber reasoned.

"..." Again Natsu fell silent as he doesn't have anything to answer for them.

Silence soon followed from the three as both were left to think about themselves in deep thought about the current situation. Both Natsu and Rin shook their heads in complete silence whilst Saber retains her position as she looked around carefully while being lost in thought.

It didn't take a few seconds for them to speak up once again as Rin suddenly remembered something.

"Well either way, let's leave it aside. Have you already seen what happened to you, Emiya?" She asked, causing Natsu to jolt into attention.

"What?"

"Take a good look of yourself in the mirror and you'll find out..." She nonchalantly replied with a dismissive expression on her face.

Natsu simply followed her instructions and stood up to search for a mirror. He looked at it and instantly widen his eyes in complete shock of his face. There is a pair of canines at the back of his teeth.

"WHAT THE HELL IS THIS! ! !" Screaming out for no reason, he landed back on his back as if he saw something horrifying from the mirror itself.

Why did he have some sharp teeth? He could remember that he doesn't have anything inside it until yesterday. Just how in the world did he manage to grow some freaking canines? He tried looking at it again to see if he wasn't mistaken about it.

At the same time, Rin and Saber followed behind with the former crossing her arms in thought. She probably knew that he was also unaware of this.

"Well, it seemed like you don't know that too, huh? Though looking more carefully at it, you look like a vampire..." She joked to which the pinkette simply scowled.

"This isn't funny... How did I get these?"

"Don't ask me, I'm also wondering about the same thing... Maybe it has something to do with your new powers..."

"How does growing one's teeth be that related to what happened last night. It doesn't make any sense."

"I'm drawing blank here... Anyway, it's not that serious. I was just trying to confirm if you're a vampire or not." She teased.

"I'm not a vampire... I'm a normal human being and I don't drink blood, dammit!" Natsu glared over to the giggling twin-tailed girl. Knowing that his statement is being laughed upon, the pinkette simply trudged slowly away from the room and tried to clear his head for awhile.

"I'm going to get some fresh air..." He huffed irritably before leaving the room and went on his way towards the small dojo just beside his house since there is no people around there so it would be a good idea if he stayed there..

..

..

Opening up the doors, Natsu straddled inside before closing it in and eventually fell down on his back, looking towards the ceiling with a troubled expression. His mind has been digging up many questions about certain things. Some of them are already to hard to answer all by himself.

"What am I going to do?" He mumbled silently under his breath as he began to sit up straight and think about the situation.

The war is just getting started and he had experienced so many changes in the past few days. Not to mention that he somehow possess some kind of mysterious power. He didn't know how he get it in the first place since he never even tried any type of magic aside from Reinforcement that he got from his late foster father.

"Huh?" Natsu muttered confusingly as he felt his senses starting to kick up once again. Only this time, it is more sharp and strong than the usual thing he felt everyday. He stood up and looked over to his hand in deep thought.

Remembering the vague memories he had last night, he somehow recalled of how his magic worked. He closed his eyes to focus as his mind drifted off to that memory and tried to observe at it a bit more.

Then all of a sudden, his hands instantly went ablaze as flames bursts out from his hand which shocked Natsu as he opened his eyes and saw that the flames didn't even hurt or burn his hand in the process.

"So, this is my other magic..." He remarked before trying to move his hand around to show how it worked. The flames were able sustain themselves without any combustible material in it.

Wanting to try out his new powers, Natsu soon made into his own battle stance and faced a training dummy before him before flaring up more flames in his hand. Eventually, the flames spread around his arm and into his body as if he was being enveloped by it without harming him in the process.

"Let's go!" Shouting in frustration, Natsu stretched out his arms in front of him to let the flames go straight towards the dummy but it seems like it didn't work as the flames didn't actually followed his hand direction.

He pondered in thought for a bit as the flames eventually died down once again.

"It seems like I have yet to master this magic..." He shook his head in depression.

But just as he said that, the door soon opened as Saber came into view to the dojo to meet up with Natsu who was slightly surprised at her presence.

"Sorry for the intrusion, Master... May I ask of what you are doing?" She asked before taking a brief look at the dojo then looking back at him.

"Ah, I'm just clearing my head for awhile since everything is still yet to be process inside my head. It's just too confusing for me to sink it all in. The war, the grail, all of it."

"I understand that you felt that way so I won't say anything. I was about ask about your powers, Master." She sat on the floor formally with her knees bent up front and beneath her lap with her hands placed on top of it.

"Well, there's my Reinforcement magic that I always use in fixing contraptions and also that new power that I strangely had last night." He elaborated.

"Do you possess some fighting techniques?"

"W-Well sort of. It kinda looks more of a natural talent than a normal one since I kinda knew some without actually learning them on my own..." He replied sheepishly while scratching then back of his head.

"Would you like to try it with me?" Saber suggested.

"You mean, like a spar?" A nod soon followed. "I think we should use start with weapons first." She added which only gave Natsu the approval before moving over to the rack and grabbed two shinais and passed one over to the female knight before putting up a battle stance.

"Can I consider this a training between master and servant?" Natsu asked.

"Yes..."

"Alright... Then here I go, Saber.." Natsu locked his eyes towards Saber as he held his sword straight and focus.

Without warning, Natsu soon dashed swiftly, using his right foot as a headstart to close himself to Saber and perform the first strike. Saber was slightly shocked at first but she still kept up her strong figure as her body became calm despite him closing on her.

And in just seconds, a loud sound soon resounded through the silent dojo as both two collided their shinais against each other. Sooner, they broke apart from each other as Natsu and saber leaped away from each other to keep a safe distance.

A moment of stare followed as Natsu had once again initiated the first move to attack. Saber calmly parried as the pinkette delivered strikes towards her in a combination streak of slashes and swings. Both displayed an impressive feat of sword fighting techniques until Saber managed to deflect Natsu's weapon from his hands and eventually went for the final blow to his head to decide the match.

"It's over!"

But just as she was about to deal the final blow, Natsu eventually dodged the strike by doing a backflip to get away from her. The shinai made contact to the wooden floor as Saber missed her chance.

"That was impressive, Master... Even if you did say it's a natural talent, you were able to fight up to my current fighting abilities." Saber remarked.

"It's nothing really. To be honest, it was kinda new to me since it was my first time doing it."

"Really?"

"I think so... There's also a matter of my new power now... I guess I should pay more attention to it than this." Natsu reasoned as he went over to his weapon and returned it back to the rack with Saber doing the same. Natsu broke a bead of sweat as he opened the sliding door to let the morning sun shine over to the interior of the dojo.

Saber sat on the ledge beside Natsu who was closing his eyes in content. The gentle breeze of the wind swept past by them and gave them a soothing feeling that made the pinkette yawn.

"Nothing beats better than a wonderful morning." Natsu commented as he laid back down on the floor with a happy expression on his face.

"You seemed to be in high spirits, Master..." Saber remarked.

"Although with the war pushing me over the edge, I still even wanted to at least enjoy life while at it..."

"Even though we're in the risk of being attacked?"

"If it comes, I'll have to fight. Right now, my only purpose of joining this war is to prevent many people from being dragged into this madness. I want to protect everyone and fight for their sake." His face soon turned serious as he got up from his position and looked at his hand in determination.

"So you don't have anything to desire from the Holy Grail?" She asked curiously.

"I don't... If I wanted one, I worked hard for it, that's all. I'm content of what I have right now. I have my own family and friends to protect and care about that's why I don't need it... But for you, it may have been a waste after all, huh?" He looked at Saber with anticipation.

"No, I won't say anything. I respect your decision, Master. And I won't say any ill words to it."

"It's alright if you could say it's stupid. After all, turning down an offer from a wish-granter is kinda wasteful in general thinking."

"It's not like that at all, Master."

They both went silent as they watched the sunrise continue on for a couple of minutes until Natsu stood up.

"We should should hurry back... We still need to reassess our knowledge and our situation as of now with Tohsaka."

"That would a good idea." And with that, they both went back to the house with Rin patiently waiting for them at the same table as before while drinking up a tea to pass the time.

..

..

"Where have you been? I've been waiting for you two to come back since you all went off somewhere without saying anything." Rin huffed as she glanced away from the pinkette with a bad mood.

"I just took a short spar with Saber at the dojo just to test out my abilities as a mage." Hearing that quirked Tohsaka in curiosity.

"Hoh, and how did it go?"

"I lost obviously..." He plainly replied.

"We left the fight unsettled, Master." Saber corrected.

"But you deflected my weapon. So technically, I lose that match."

He went over to the table and finally sat together with Saber as Rin simply sipped in her cup for the last time before putting it down and began their conversation, concerning about their current situation.

"Well it seems like everything is fine now so I'll be going on ahead." She spoke.

"Yeah... Thanks for everything. You've been a great help." Natsu could only flash a toothy grin to which caught Rin off guard as she staggered from it.

"W-What are you saying all of a sudden?! D-Don't be so friendly with me, Emiya-kun... Remember that we'll be enemies once I'm done with my debt to you." She retorted.

"Mmm... I look forward to it.. I won't lose to you Tohsaka." He flash another grin with a carefree attitude that confused Rin even more.

"W-Why are you so worked up on this? Aren't you a little bit worried that we have to kill each other?"

"Who says that I'm killing anyone? Whether you like it or not, I'll fight to win without killing anyone."

"Even if they ended up stabbing you in the back?" She questioned.

"It's not about a matter of trust... It's about my own will to fight for the sake of my friends. Even if they do turn up to be my enemy, I'll fight to the very best to win and save them as well." He explained without hesitating as his determination had been already set towards this war.

He had no doubts of what he will do. No matter what comes in his way, he will definitely win. He wanted to end this war so that no more innocent people will be involved any longer.

"Hmph... Do as you like. But let me warn you, I won't hold back in killing you in the future, Emiya-kun." Rin threatened to which Saber had to raise her guard but was stopped but Natsu as he lifted a hand before her to stand down.

"Then I'll do my best in saving you from this pointless war, Tohsaka." He replied with faint smile.

Rin simply stood up and finally went out of the house as her business with Natsu is already done. No matter how she looked at it, Natsu is nothing more but a master who wanted to end things peacefully. He was not aware of the fact that this war is nothing like the other wars written down in history. There are no talks and negotiations of wanting to end this peacefully. It's all about fighting for the worthiness of obtaining the Holy Grail to grant one's wishes. Such a thing is pure idiocy and useless.

As she walked she soon notices Archer appearing from behind after materializing from his spiritual form.

"So are you done already with the boy?"

"Yes... I have repaid my debt to him."

"You seemed troubled, Rin... Don't forget about your sole reason." Archer noticed her troubled expression.

"I won't forget it. After all, the Tohsakas have been desiring the Holy Grail. I won't stray on that path now." She spoke in determination.

"I see. Are you really sure that you can take him on?"

"Don't worry... Right now, He and I are both enemies. There's no need to hold anything back."

..

..

..

Back at the house, Natsu worked on the kitchen as Saber simply sat down at the table waiting idly. Apparently, he had been using too much time during the discussion and his short spar with Saber without thinking about breakfast. He was about to share it also with Rin but she suddenly went off just like that. Not that he wanted to blame her or anything.

He kinda understands of how she feels at the moment. And he couldn't change the fact that both of them will become enemies once they meet again.

"You want some tea, Saber?"

"It is not necessary for us, servants to eat but I'll take up on that offer..." She replied blankly.

"Alright... Wait for a minute." He stopped his cooking at the moment and went over to his room and search for his tattered clothes from last night. It didn't take a few seconds for him to locate it and eventually frown at its state. With some dried blood together with some deep cuts from where he suffered injuries at, it seems pretty useless for him to use it.

And even if he did want to repair it, he might be mistaken into some kind of a killer if he showed it to a person. Well, all the more reason to throw it away.

But just as he was about to place in a nearby garbage can, a small thud came as his eyes looked down on the same pendant that he got from school after being presumably killed by that blue-haired guy.

"Strange..." He mumbled as he took a good look at it before placing it in his drawer as a remembrance of that night. Standing up after throwing his tattered clothes in the garbage, he returned back to the kitchen and resumed his cooking.

"Sorry for making you wait.." He apologized.

"It's not a problem... I also wanted to ask something about you..."

"What is it?"

"It's about your training... Do you often train with your magic?"

"Well I use the storeroom for that kind of practice... I use the dojo while I'm trying to enhance my fighting skills but it seems like I have to train on my magic more often since I already knew how to fight." He explained.

"I see. Then I also have something to tell you concerning about my identity, Master." As soon as she said that, Natsu stopped cooking for awhile as he slowly sat across Saber with an interested look.

"Oh yeah, I haven't known your real name since I normally called you based on your class."

"About that, it's natural for servants to reveal their identity to their masters so that it would be easier to form up any strategy based on capabilities on both master and servant if they known each other's identity and fighting prowess but I wanted to ask you to excuse about revealing my true identity to you, Master..." she paused as she closed her eyes in thought.

"...I know that it will be a form of discourtesy as a servant but I simply wanted to do this, just in case that enemy may not know of my true power yet if you were captured."

"True... but you should at least have faith in me, Saber.. I can handle by my own when it comes to fighting." He replied. There must be a reason for her to not reveal her name yet since she is quite troubled by it. They went silent all of a sudden as the sound of boiling food followed through the room.

Natsu could only smile as he finally made his decision.

"Very well, I guess I would just call you saber for the time being."

"Thank you, Master..." She bowed.

"Anyway, isn't it about time that you stop calling me, Master? I mean, we already knew each other so calling me so formally is too much for me." Natsu reminded.

"You haven't introduced yourself properly to me...Master." She replied.

"Is that so? Well, I'm Emiya Natsu. It would be nice if you could just call me Natsu." He smiled.

"You're right... I like that too. Then I will call you Natsu from now on..." She answered with a faint angelic smile which slightly caught Natsu off guard as he fell down to the floor comically.

"Natsu?" She asked worriedly.

"I completely forgot you were a girl... If any guy who had seen you like that, they would've called you cute..." He commented as he regained his composure.

"I may not look like it but I'm a knight at heart. Such flattery will never faze me." She reasoned.

No comment. No good can come to reply back since Natsu really cared less of it.

"But I never actually thought that you would be that kind of person who would say such things." Saber remarked.

"Blame it to those crappy romance shows on TV... I just followed what they actually do since they said it would make a girl better if you compliment her." He explained.

"Are you having trouble speaking with women?"

"Slightly... The only ones that I can speak freely is you, Tohsaka, Sakura and Fuji-nee."

"Sorry if I may ask, but who are Sakura and Fuji-nee?" Saber asked curiously upon hearing the two names which made Natsu to think briefly.

"Oh, I haven't mentioned them about you, huh?" But just as he was speaking, a doorbell soon rang from the entrance as both Natsu and Saber turned to look at the door and saw two figures behind it.

"Speak of the devil, there they are..." Natsu spoke.

Wait a moment. If Fuji-nee is here and Saber is here, would that mean spell a lot of trouble? It was then Natsu finally realized what he was currently in.

Oh, crap! I'm dead.

* * *

 **A/N: And that's a wrap. That will be the end of this chapter. Next would be concerning about the Rider arc and some events at the appearance of Sakura and Taiga. I would like to try to skip to the part where Saber is usually kept hidden from the two and move on to the actually meeting of the three since I don't want to prolong this story too much with many chapters.**

 **So this will the last fast update I have for you guys since I made up with its chapters to the other one so expect some long updates from now on. Sorry about this and I'll try to update as soon as I can.**

 **That's all for now.. See ya on the next chapter.. Don't forget to leave a review.**

 **\- wiErD SpeCtrumz blacking out... ... ...**


	5. The First Night

**A/N: Hello guys. Welcome, wiErD here and I've got another chapter for you guys.**

 **Hope ya like it.**

 **Have Fun and Happy Reading. :)**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own FT and FSN. Hiro Mashima and TYPE-MOON owns them respectively.**

* * *

 **\- The First Night -**

Natsu sweated heavily as the sound of the doorbell soon rang throughout the silent house, seemingly coming from the outside where Sakura and Taiga are supposed to be. He spent too much time worrying about the grail war that he actually forgot to remind himself that those two were about to enter the house at this time.

"What to do?!" The pinkette panicked inside his thought, knowing that he had no idea on how he would actually explain this to them. Taiga might never accept this development since she always prods about how she should be his guardian or some sort.

With Saber here, she might burn too quickly and began asking questions about her, knowing that she is exactly not a human being by nature but a servant spirit doomed to follow him whatever the cost will be.

"Master, is there something wrong?" The golden-haired knight could not help but ask, seeing her master running around in circles with a panicked expression on his face.

"Well, yes... Fuji-nee and Sakura are at the door!" Natsu wailed in distress.

"I'm sorry but who are they?"

"They're my friendly neighbors who come a lot often to my house to help me around." He explained.

"Like a freeloader?"

"You could say that but Fuji-nee tends to be more of a pain than a freeloader." He pointed out thoroughly which only made Saber to ponder in thought about the two new people just outside the house. It might come to be a surprise for her about Natsu to have some people right beside him since she generally viewed to be the type of a lone person, seeing from his looks.

"So what is the problem?" She continued, still not catching on to Natsu's problem.

"Can't you see? If Fuji-nee and Sakura finds out that I have another girl staying at my house, they might misunderstand something... I've known those two for a very long time, you know?" Natsu explained.

"I don't see quite the problem there, Natsu..." She innocently answered. Natsu could only sigh in confusion.

"You know... What I mean is that how will the two will think about you living in my house since you just came out of nowhere without any background of where you're from.. I can't simply say that you were my servant. You said that we're not involving any people in this grail war so the two will be also included at that." It only took a few seconds for Saber to sink down that statement inside her thought.

"I see... Well then, how about I hide in the meantime, in order to avoid any detection." She proposed.

"What are you talking about?" As if Natsu didn't exactly understand what she really said.

"In that way, I could avoid the two from getting involved any further about the grail war so you shouldn't be worried. Is that right, Natsu?"

"Wait a second there... Why would I hide from those two?" Saber could only tilt her head in confusion.

"What do you mean, Natsu?"

"I don't want to neglect you from those two... It just seemed very awful for me to do that kind of thing…" Natsu spoke solemnly as he scratched his head in uncertainty.

"Won't that compromise our secret? And you said that we must prevent anyone from getting involved in the grail war..."

"Yes... But I just can't stand there letting you hide from other people just because of some secret. We'll just have to create a background for you.." Natsu explained.

"Master, there's no need for such-" She was cut short as Natsu instantly got an idea popping out in his head. He placed his locked fist to his open hand, showing that he found something that can help them solve the problem.

"I got it! Old man had a habit of travelling overseas. I'll just tell them that you're an acquaintance of him and you had to come here to look after me..."

"Why do you risk that much for me, Natsu. I don't see the point of letting me be with other people... My only purpose is to follow you alone." Saber spoke stoically, unsure of how she would express her emotion towards the situation.

Natsu simply groan in depression as he could see Saber to be some sort of a mother.

"You're too uptight about things... Don't worry, I'm sure the two will eager to know you better once they've met you..." With that said, Natsu simply dragged Saber by the hand towards the entrance in a hasty pace. The sound of the doorbell still rang as the two waited patiently from the outside for Natsu to open the door for them.

"Natsu? Are you there?" Taiga called out from the other side as Natsu and Saber eventually came by the door separating them from the two.

"Coming!" He called out before slightly hesitating to open the knob. He looked at Saber for confirmation to which the blonde-haired knight simply nodded in response without any change from her stony expression.

After a moment, Natsu finally opened the door, waiting for the two to come inside and meet Saber. The door creaked slowly and it only took Natsu a few more seconds to realize something.

In a split-second, Taiga soon came in swinging from above as her hands was clutched from the upper railing of the door and seemingly ready to tackle Natsu.

"Oooorryyyaaa!" After that brief shout, Natsu simply shifted sideways as he easily dodged her sudden attack from the front and eventually let her swing further inside, causing her grip from the door to lose and went straight towards the floor.

"How long are you gonna keep up with that kind of prank?" Natsu sighed wearily as he looked over to the downed teacher on the floor. Saber was also surprised at the sudden action from the teacher as she was left to stare blankly towards her.

"Fujimura-sensei?!" A familiar voice soon resounded outside the door, prompting the two to look over to the purple-haired girl wearing a school uniform.

"Yo! Sakura... I'm sure you're here to help me out, right?"

"W-Well, yes... There's really no more other reason for me to come over to your house every time except that."

"Then, will you do me a favor a throw the tiger to the backyard?"

"You're mean, Natsu!"

With the three people talking at each other, Saber could only tilt his head in confusion as she can't quite follow the flow of their conversation. Not that she's trying to know something, it's just seemed so curious to see her master interact with people so normally without any form of negative feeling in it.

Eventually, it didn't take long for the two girls to notice the unknown blonde-haired girl behind Natsu and could not help but feel shocked.

"Natsu, who is she?" Taiga asked curiously though she was starting to harbor some suspicion towards Saber.

"Ah, this is Saber... She's an acquaintance of father in one of his travels. Apparently, she came here to Japan to visit me at his request."

"Hoh, what reason for her to come here except that? I'm sure there's something more to it!" Taiga sounded unconvinced at the statement.

Despite that, Saber could only bow down formally towards the two with elegance that caused them to feel surprised yet again.

"Good evening... My name's Saber... Natsu's father requested my presence here in this country in hopes of looking out for him in his abscence. Please take care of me…"

"Kugh-" Taiga stuttered at her seemingly bright attitude as if she was standing before a radiant person.

While this was going on, Sakura could only mutter under breath that caught Natsu's attention due to his heightened senses.

"Saber... ..."

"You know her, Sakura?" He asked, causing the purple-haired girl to stumble and flailed her arms in denial.

"N-No... I-It's just that her name seemed strange even for a girl."

"I apologize but this is the name that I inherited from my late parents." Saber faced Sakura with an apologetic manner.

"I-It's alright… It's nice to meet you, Saber-san."

"WAIT A MOMENT THERE!" All eyes turned over to the teacher who was steaming out from her head, completely displeased at the turn of events before her. She looked narrowly at Saber and then to Natsu.

"Natsu, I still don't know this person even though she was an acquaintance of Kiritsugu so I can't simply approve of this!" She stuck with finality in her words.

"What makes you say that?! Is there a problem?" Natsu tried to ask for the reason.

"OF COURSE, THERE'S A PROBLEM!" She screamed on the top of her lungs with a very irritated look on her face to which was very different from the way she handles things with a composed manner.

"You're already seducing a blonde beauty, Natsu... I can't let you turn into one of those delinquents out there! It's just so wrong!" She comically cried.

"YOU'RE OVERTHINKING IT TOO MUCH, FUJI-NEE!" Both Natsu and Sakura shouted.

"Oh yeah... Considering Natsu's poor actions towards girls, it's very unlikely but still-" Taiga pondered in thought.

"Oi! Are you insulting me?!"

"Anyway, could at least let her stay in the house for the time being... It was a request from my old man, you know... It might be a bit bad for us to not fulfill that request." Natsu reasoned, prompting the two to look at each other with unsure looks.

..

..

Silently sighing in defeat, Taiga surrendered together with the help of Sakura who meekly agreed on the decision.

"Alright, I'll approve of Saber's accommodation in this house but-" She stopped before standing and pointed a finger towards the blonde-haired knight with challenging smirk on her face.

"She'll have to defeat me in a duel in order to convince me."

"Didn't you just accept her? What's this about a duel?" Natsu deadpanned.

"A duel with swords!" She declared while Natsu comically fell down on the floor.

 _'You just dug your own grave!'_

Natsu looked wearily at the proud teacher with a sympathetic look. She's gonna get slaughtered in a matter of seconds. Why is she so persistent at this? Can they just let this go and eat together as usual?

Saber simply closed her eyes briefly to think before opening them again and faced Taiga with the same determination and smiled.

"Very well, we shall settle this in a sword fight…" And with that, the two combatants simply went out from the house and into the dojo to prepare themselves while Natsu and Sakura followed afterwards.

* * *

Natsu felt tired at seeing the sight before him. There lies two female contenders with their suits in exception of the head gear and other protective garments all over their bodies. With the decision being made by Taiga herself, the rules pretty simply though; If one manages to disarm the other, the match is decided.

That means the two are free to use any kinds of actions on their own discretion for the sake of winning the other over.

With Sakura beside him, Natsu simply yawned wearily as he simply laid his head back on the wall to watch the fight end. Bets on Saber though... Fuji-nee doesn't know what she is capable of and it would be pretty interesting to see this fight end with Taiga submitting to her inevitably.

"This is really getting out of hand, right Sakura?" Natsu spoke.

"Of course, Fujimura-sensei is upset." She replied with a slight distaste in her voice which was unusual from what she was back there when she talked to Saber for the first time.

"Huh?"

"You brought home a girl who none of us have met before..." She muttered.

"What's wrong with that face? You were just nice to Saber a minute ago..."

"Well, she's a stranger so I had to respect her."

"And not me?" She nodded.

"What the hell is that reason? Anyway, it's not what you think, alright? Old man simply wanted her to stay here and look out for me since I'm the only son." He reasoned but Sakura simply glanced away with an 'hmph' in her voice to which the pinkette simply sweatdropped.

On the other side of the room, Taiga smirked underneath her breath as she looked proudly towards Saber with a brave look.

"Heh, do you think you're strong enough to defeat me?" As soon as she said that, she instantly went towards Saber who was still preparing her shinai for the fight which caught Natsu off guard and sweatdropped.

"I AM TAIGA FUJIMURA, THE TIGER OF FUYUKI! THIS IS MY VICTORY, SABER! ! ! !" She declared as she closed on in towards the blonde girl with her shinai raised up above her and ready to slash her down with it.

"She cheated! You attacked before the fight could even start!" Natsu commented. At the corner was Sakura, praying for her victory as well.

"What the hell are you praying for?!"

Saber simply composed herself as Taiga reached in for a slash towards her. Closing her eyes briefly, she skipped sideways to dodge the attack to which shocked Natsu and Sakura at the speed of her steps to avoid the attack.

Seeing from the sidelines, Natsu and Sakura could not help but sweatdrop at the sight. Taiga was complete open for any counter attacks but Saber stood her own while trying to analyse the situation before her.

"Wah-" Taiga stuttered as her surprise attack was easily handled. She looked at the still composed blonde girl who was holding on to her shinai, not wanting to attack back.

Natsu and Sakura were already holding some kitchen tools in their hands, imitating to be some sort of a commentator of a duel.

"So lame! Taiga's surprise attack was seriously lame as hell!" Natsu wooed.

"Don't joke around, Natsu!" Taiga retorted.

Looking back at Saber, Taiga sweated nervously before trying to sound confident after that shameful attack just now.

"Y-Your reflexes are pretty good but... you can't keep your composed face for too long!" She launched once again, in hopes of striking her down though it was easily dodged by saber who simply waited for something to come up for a victory without injuring her opponent.

Each strikes are simply met with blank air as Taiga desperately tried to hit her with all her might but to no avail. Saber was literally skipping around as if she wasn't taking this battle seriously. And it made Taiga even more frustrated.

"Why you-"

"You should be able to understand it by now... So please, lay down your sword and surrender." She reasoned but instead, Taiga refused to concede defeat.

"NEVER! I WILL NEVER ALLOW MYSELF TO BE DEFEATED LIKE THIS! I PROMISED TO WIN THIS, NO MATTER WHAT!" She shouted in defiance. Flashbacks of her memories came back to her briefly after saying that promise.

The memories of her duties as Natsu's protector simply rekindled her determination to win the battle. No matter what type of opponents she faces, she will defeat them in order to protect Natsu.

Though the fact that it was merely a misunderstanding about who's protecting who, she really doesn't know what she's fighting for. Despite that, Saber was amused at her unwavering conviction to continue the battle even though the odds were against her.

That moment of amusement was cut short as Taiga brought out a pouch from her pocket to which she had no knowledge of since the fight forbids bringing anything aside from the shinai.

Natsu sweatdropped at the sight once again.

"Oh, god help us..."

Throwing it on the floor, a huge smoke of chalk powder erupted from it, causing the surroundings to be filled with it, limiting the vision of anyone who's inside.

"And she cheated once again. This time, a smokescreen. This battle is getting more retarded than ever!" Again Natsu commented with a kitchen spoon together with Sakura.

"Saber is completely lost... Will Fujimura-sensei win this?"

Saber shielded her eyes as the sight of her opponent was obscured by the powder. Without warning, A figure looms above the smokescreen as Taiga appeared from behind ready with her shinai to strike Saber down in one go. Natsu and Sakura were astonished to find her able to confuse Saber even though it was small underhanded tactic.

"I've looked after Natsu since he was little and now... ... ... I WON'T HAND HIM OVER TO THE LIKES OF YOU! ! !" With that declaration, Taiga struck her shinai down to Saber into the smoke and eventually generated a small gust of wind that caused the smoke to spread out, panicking Natsu.

"My house, my house! This is my house, dammit. Not a battleground!"

"No, wait Natsu-senpai. Look over there." Sakura pointed over the distance as she stopped to look carefully at it but the smoke made it harder for her to see. Natsu also stopped panicking and decided to wait the match.

Smoke cleared and both of them widen their eyes in surprise as Saber easily caught the shinai away from Taiga who was still motioning her arms like she still held in it. She soon realized that she lost the battle before looking at the shadowed blonde-haired knight with a dumbfounded look.

"Wha-What in the world?"

"Do you understand now? Will this be enough for you to accept defeat?" Saber looked stoically at her one last time.

True enough, Taiga simply fell on her knees, unable to pick up words to say of the situation. Natsu and Sakura awaited for her reaction since she lost the battle. Moments later, Taiga soon teared up from her eyes and began to cry like a baby.

"Waaaaah! Natsu is being taken away from me!"

"SHE CRIED?!"

Saber seemed to lose her composure at the sight of her opponent crying in front of her.

"Wait a minute... It's not like I'm taking him away or anything... You don't need to cry." But just as she was about to reach out a helping hand, Taiga's expression turned beastly as she grabbed the shinai from the knight's grip and began to surprise her once again.

"GET REAL! YOU LET YOUR GUARD DOWN, SABER! THIS IS MY WIN!"

"And she cheated once again! The tiger's at it again!" Another comment went through.

 ***CLAP***

The sound of hand clapping was heard throughout the room as Saber easily caught the shinai, shocking Taiga once more though the expression written on the knight's face was not normal as it was been during the fight.

"Heh, I thought I saw some kind of dirty trick earlier. Maybe it was my imagination." She smiled devilishly that is obviously a farce to hide her true expression on the situation.

"W-Well..." Taiga tried to excuse herself but she lost it.

"Should I let you remember the meaning of chivalry, Fujimura-san." Her face turned serious that sent shocks throughout everyone's spine just from the tone of her voice.

"Hold on! It was joke!"

"No excuses! Let's continue!"

"Natsu, help me!" The cries of the teacher didn't go unheard by the two but they simply stood there watching her demise. Natsu simply lowered his head and began to pray.

"Rest in peace, Fuji-nee... Your sacrifice will not be in vain..." He solemnly spoke.

"I'M NOT DEAD YET- WAAAHH!"

"Oh, she can still speak." Natsu remarked.

"Should we do something about this?" Sakura became worried.

"Nah, I'd rather watch this!" Came the happy smile.

"YOU'RE CRUEL, NATSU!"

And Taiga never walked alive after that.

* * *

After the fight, Saber simply knelt beside an unconscious Taiga who was being tended by the two people from the sidelines. The fight was... ... brutal for lack of a better word. Without knowing her limits, saber must have taken the fight seriously and knocked the poor teacher out cold during the fight. It had to be postponed since it was really getting out of hand.

"I'm deeply sorry for what happened, Taiga. I got myself too carried away." Saber apologized beside the teacher who was still unconscious.

"Oi, Fuji-nee. You still alive?" Natsu tried to tickle her sides which worked and sprung the lady back to life.

"Where am I?"

"In my house."

"Wha-What?! I was sure that I'm in some sort of a chamber with many pictures of Natsu strapped inside. It was a good dream."

"What kind of creepy dreams are you having, Fuji-nee?"

"Fujimura-sensei! Are you alright?" Sakura soon joined in with a worried expression as she handed out a moist towel to cover her head.

"Sakura-chan?! What happened?" She asked numbly.

"You pulled out a stupid trick to dishonor Saber's chivalry so you got yourself beat." Natsu explained.

"Who's Saber?" She stupidly asked, not remembering of what happened earlier.

"And we got an amnesiac Fuji-nee... The plot thickens..." Natsu comically spoke grimly only to be scolded by the purple-haired girl.

"Natsu-senpai!"

"Sorry..."

"Are you alright, Taiga? I must have caused you real harm." Saber soon butted in the conversation and simply bowed in an apologetic manner before Taiga who was dumbfounded at first until her memories came rushing back to her mind.

"Oh, I remember... It's okay, Saber-san... I wasn't exactly serious myself back then... Sorry for holding back."

"Quit acting high and mighty!" Natsu shouted.

"Muuoo! Alright, I lost." She finally admitted. Natsu and Sakura sighed.

"But you know, I have a feeling that I can entrust his safety to you, Saber... Can I count you on that?" Taiga proposed to which shocked the whole three, especially Saber who was hesitant to say something before closing her eyes in content and held her hand as a promise.

"Of course, I will swear to protect Natsu with all my life." She answered, causing Taiga to smile nonetheless.

"You don't need to pass something like that to her, Fuji-nee." Both heads soon turned over to Natsu who was listening intently at their conversation.

"What do you mean?"

"You can always protect me anytime, Fuij-nee. I'm already grateful that you continued to look after me until now so there's no need to say something like that. If you want to protect me, then just keep doing what you want. I'll also protect you and my family like always." Natsu smiled in his toothy grin that caused the teacher to tear up from those words.

Without warning, Taiga simply launched herself towards Natsu, tackling him in the process and hugging him tightly like stuffed toy.

"Muuoo! You're so sweet, Natsu! I'll continue to look after you together with Saber, okay?" She smiled once again. Natsu could only smile at her as they both hugged each other and simply let go after that.

"Anyways, you should prepare for the next round, Saber?"

"What?" Natsu pointed over to the seemingly prepared Sakura in her kendo clothes, holding a bow beside her.

"I-I'm next!"

"Let's just eat inside, shall we?"

Somehow, Natsu's suggestion got everyone to think for a moment and finally deciding on that rather than continuing this pointless duel about protecting Natsu. He can defend himself. He's not some kind of frail human being that needs to be given with great care.

And for the first time, the tension seemed to have died down between sides as they both came into an agreement that they would protect Natsu altogether which annoyed him to no end.

Nevertheless, he smiled in content, seeing that Saber was able to interact with other people for the first time without any fear of hiding from people who weren't involved in the grail war.

"Delicious as ever... You can never say no to Natsu's cooking!" Taiga remarked as she dug herself some food to sate her hunger from tonight's duel.

"Sakura helped too so we made it together..."

"N-Not really, you did most of the work, Natsu-san." Sakura meekly replied with a blush on her face.

"Really? It doesn't more like it though. But still, thanks for helping out tonight as usual. I appreciate it!" He smiled that eve caused her to shrink down from size cause of extreme embarrassment from him.

"How about you, Saber? How's Natsu's cooking?" Taiga asked over to the silent blonde girl who simply put down her spoon and smiled.

"It's extraordinary! I've never tasted anything so delicious than this." She complimented.

"That's a relief..."

And with that, the night continued with the three happily enjoying their dinner throughout the night as Saber was able to converse with the two freely without any hind of caution. Natsu liked it better this way. He never would have wanted to hide her away from other people just because of some war known only to them, he also wanted her to interact with people freely without holding anything back.

Whether she was a servant or not, she's still a human in his eyes and he would never change that view no matter what. He values the feelings of other people, wanting them to be shared freely without any restrictions or rules that prevent them from doing so.

He always believed in the bonds of family and friends. That belief alone was the only thing that kept him going with all these years.

Eventually, the night begins to turn over to the midnight and the two had to return to their homes to rest. Sakura and Taiga were standing at the road just before the entrance of the house with Natsu and Saber standing on the other side.

"We'll be going now... Take care of yourself, Natsu." Taiga smiled.

"Of course, Fuji-nee. You take care too, okay?"

"Sure! Oh, and Saber-" She called over to the blonde-haired girl beside him.

"Yes. What is it?"

"That is a promise, okay?" She reminded, prompting her to nod in response while smiling.

"Of course, I will forever hold to that promise for the rest of my life."

"Good, then we'll be heading home... Good night, Natsu!"

"See you, Fuji-nee, Sakura!" He waved as the two simply disappeared from the road, leaving the two alone.

"I guess we should head back inside too."

"Sure."

...

...

...

Back at the two girls, Taiga and Sakura simply walked downhill on the side of the road. The silent night simply covered the entire atmosphere as they both didn't talk at each other for quite some time now.

"Fujimura-sensei?" Sakura suddenly asked, prompting the teacher to turn around in confusion towards her.

"What's wrong, Sakura?"

"Are you really sure about this?" She asked worriedly though Taiga simply closed her eyes and smiled at her.

"I have no regrets... In truth, I have a feeling that Saber-san would protect him from anything. And not just her, I'll always share the same role because Natsu said so. That makes you one too, right Sakura?" She looked over to the uncertain girl.

"Y-Yeah... I guess you're right..." She reluctantly agreed.

"See? Now stop moping and let's head back to our homes... We have big day tomorrow and we need to get to Natsu early in the morning to help him out." Taiga proposed.

"Sure..." Sakura replied with uncertainty before looking up to the night sky with a worried look.

"Saber, Natsu... Be careful..."

* * *

Natsu begins to wash the dishes in the sink to finish his last chore and hit the beds soon. Tonight's was a very tiring day for him. There's so many things that happened in the short time but it all ended with him introducing Saber to the two without revealing the truth behind the war. It was great relief from him though he knew that he would be risking the safety of his two precious friends if things gotten out of hand.

No matter what happens, he must not let that thing get past by him and protect them with all he's got. With the new power he got from the fight with Berserker, he must train himself from now on in order to protect them.

He can't be always having himself be protected by Saber all the time. She's not as invincible as any other servant out there and he had to prepare himself to fight to help her in the course of the war itself.

Having this thoughts jumbled inside his mind, Natsu could only stare blankly into space, leaving the water from the faucet to flow endlessly.

"You seemed troubled, Natsu... What's wrong?" Saber asked beside him who was also helping with the dishes.

"It's nothing... Just had some things to think about tomorrow."

I understand that you were thinking a lot about the war but don't let it get to you, Natsu. We need a calm mind when the situation calls for it."

"I guess..." Came the reluctant reply.

"Are you worried about them?"

"A little but I'm hoping that they won't get involved anymore than this... I care for them, you know."

"You're a very kindhearted person, Natsu. I've never come to meet someone as caring as you. Worrying for their safety and all." She remarked.

"I dunno about that... Maybe it's something that I am that makes me whole. Like it's in my blood."

"So you inherited them from Kiritsugu..." She assumed.

"No, no... The old man was never my real father... He found me on that day from ten years ago." Hearing that made Saber slightly curious.

"Can you tell me more about it?" She asked to which the pinkette simply made a dry laugh.

"Well, it's not gonna pleasant for you to hear... but okay." He began his story with Saber.

"I was just a little boy back then with no memories of my past life or anything... But I do remember my name." He trailed off as he simply made a sad smile that he tried to hide but Saber saw it.

"...To make things even worse, I found myself standing over a flaming city... People around these parts call it the tragedy from 10 years ago. The entire neighborhood of the city was simply destroyed in flames. Lots of families and people were left to burn alive. I would've been one of them if not for the old man. He saved me back then even though I had no memories. Yet he cried, saying that he finally saved someone." Saber could only widen her eyes in surprise at this revelation but continued to keep her composure to finish his story.

"...I don't know why he was so overjoyed to save only me but I somehow felt his feelings and that kinda makes me glad. Ever since then, I've been trying to do the same thing. He even told about how he wanted to be a hero of justice for the people. I can't say that I'll try to become like one since I respect him too much and don't want to be more than a shadow of his footsteps. I began to work myself in a different way. I wanted to help people and have fun with them, cherish memories with them and laugh with them."

"... That's the only thing that I wanted for my family and friends. It's pretty much as the same as the old man." Natsu tried to laugh it off but Saber simply shook her head before looking up to him.

"No, you're not wrong. Your beliefs are what makes you a person and it's a very heartwarming one. It's true that you and Kiritsugu can never be the same but you always strive to improve yourself and follow to what you actually believed in. I have no objections to that fact. Natsu will always be Natsu.

"Gee, thanks... I think I'm kinda feel better now." He smiled before finally putting the last dish into the tray and finally cleaned the entire sink.

The two simply placed down their cleaning tools as they both soon went towards Natsu's room and call it a night.

"Wait a moment, Saber." Natsu called out, stopping the blonde girl from her tracks as she looked back at him in confusion.

"What is it, Natsu?"

"It's late for me to say this but would it be inappropriate for us to sleep in the same room. I mean, even though you're a servant, there's has to be limits."

"I don't get what you mean Natsu but in times like these, we had to comply since the possibility of an enemy to sneak up on you and take you away without my presence will surely hinder our plans in winning the war." Saber stated.

"You're sounding like a mother to me... Come on, you're overthinking about it too much!"

"How about you?"

"What about me?"

"Is it fine for you to let me sleep beside you?"

"Well, I don't mind it either way but Fuji-nee and Sakura wouldn't like it if they knew that we're sleeping together."

"Then it's fine..." She suddenly agreed much to Natsu's confusion.

"Huh?"

"You said you were fine with it so there's no need for me to argue."

"Wait a minute, Saber... We should also think about the moral thingies too. How about you take your futon just at the next room so there will be no more problems." He suggested.

"But Natsu, it will hinder my efforts in safeguarding you all night... I promised Taiga that I will look after you for the rest of my life." She protested, causing Natsu to be rattled just from hearing a promise from Fuji-nee.

He hesitated at first as he trying to think up a way to excuse himself but there's none. Sighing in defeat, Natsu shook his head to surrender.

"Alright... I'll let you sleep but it'll have to be only one night! After that, you'll sleep on the other room, okay?"

"But, Natsu-"

"No buts! Just open the slide door between our rooms if you want to watch over me the whole night... Heck, you might fall asleep when you do that." He retorted.

"Servants don't require sleep... We only just rest to replenish our powers."

"Whatever... Bring your futon and be done with it!"

"I don't need it." Natsu could only turn around back at her.

"What?"

"I'll just sleep beside you. That way I could protect from any danger." She stated, not before long having the pinkette to comically fell on the floor hard.

"JUST HOW MUCH ARE YOU WILLING TO GET CLOSE JUST TO PROTECT ME!"

"Just as much." She answered.

"I didn't tell you to answer, dammit!" She ignored his complaints and simply prepared their futon at the room.

"Shall we sleep then?"

"Don't just go preparing someone's futon! Oh wait, if I had some command seals then I'll just have to use them in order for you to submit to me." He realized.

"Don't be reckless, Natsu... Your command seals are only to be used in emergency and dire situations."

"THIS IS AN EMERGENCY SITUATION ALRIGHT..."

"If you use them, I can fight it back."

"That's unfair! Why would you risk so far just to do that?!"

"Because it's a promise that I swore to fulfill even at the cost of my life... As a knight, I will hold on to that promise until it's been fulfilled." She swore.

Natsu finally gave up... She was so stubborn to convince so there's no need for him to complain about it. He'll just have to prepare for the consequences that is about to come when the time comes for the two to notice their shameless acts.

He would blame Saber though he doubt that he can convince them.

Sighing once again, Natsu simply laid down on the futon and grumpily shifted sideways away from Saber who nodded to his response of the situation. Turning off the lights, Natsu scowled inwardly as he felt her back clashing with hers.

Though it was his first time sleeping with a girl next to him, he doesn't feel embarrassed about it though he felt a little uneasy since he had a habit of sleeping messily.

Minutes turned to hours as Natsu couldn't feel sleepy at all because of his uneasiness towards the situation. He didn't turn around, not knowing whether Saber was asleep or not since it's been quiet over the night.

"Saber?" He whispered but no response came which only made Natsu to smile since he could only assume that she was already asleep.

Silently shifting himself away from the futon, Natsu laid himself on the wooden floor and placed the blanket solely on Saber before sleeping completely on the other side.

A few moments later, Saber shifted herself towards the pinkette with curiosity. She was awake the whole time, pretending to be asleep. She slightly shook her head confusingly before gazing towards the pinkette. She could clearly see him snoring along the way which slightly made her giggle much to her confusion and shock because she never done it before.

"You're a very interesting person, Natsu... I'm lucky to have serve you as my master..." She smiled before closing her eyes too and rested her body throughout the night while keeping watch for Natsu's safety.

* * *

 **A/N: And that's a wrap... I'm sorry for not updating on the right time since it's all schoolwork on me... I can'y simply ignore them so I had to be out of the site for quite some time. But I'll promise to return fully on December since it's all Christmas. That way, I can finally return to my usual update schedules.**

 **For the chapter, I haven't gotten any story progress in it, just some minor ones like the meeting of Saber with Taiga and Sakura so yeah... Pretty uch of a filler chapter but it's required in order to understand the character's footing on the story. Next chapter will be a more progressing one since it might feature about the battle once again and of course, the Rider Ark. (Called it like that.)**

 **That's all for now guys, thanks for reading and don't forget to leave a review.**

 **\- wiErD SpeCtrumz blacking out... ... ...**


	6. Battles and Alliances

**A/N: Hello, everyone. wiErD here. Here's the next chapter of the story. Hope ya like it.**

 **And of course, Advance Merry Christmas to you all. School's out so I'll be happily enjoying my stay here in this site so once again, please take care of me. :)**

 **Have Fun and Happy Reading.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own FT and FSN. Credit goes to their respective owners.**

* * *

 **\- Battles and Alliances -**

Natsu simply shifted his nose as the blinding light of the rising sun penetrated through the windows and into his room that caused him to shift himself continuously before finally opening his eyes from his long sleep.

Looking slowly at the interiors of his room, he eventually found himself sleeping on a rather uncomfortable position as he was way out of his sleeping futon and had his blanket scattered. Yawning loudly at the silent room, the pinkette simply rose up from his sleep with a half-asleep face. His hair was as messy as usual and he didn't even bothered to brush it since he liked it this way. His scarf was still in its usual place as he simply looked at it and smiled faintly.

However, his nose soon caught a favorable scent that caused him to stand up and look for the source. This scent was all too familiar for him to not recognize. It was the scent of breakfast, meat to be exact.

Oh how he loved that one word alone.

Staggering himself towards the hall, Natsu followed the scent as if the aroma of the food seemed like a rope tied on his nose, with him dragging himself to where it leads. Eventually, he came into the kitchen and not before long he widen his eyes in delight after seeing a wide variety of food served at the table. A drool escaped from the corner of his lips to which he didn't bother to wipe off. He also didn't bother to notice the person inside the kitchen who was responsible for the cooking, greet towards him in a peaceful manner.

"Good morning, Natsu... I trust that the night has got your energy restored from last night?"

"Oh, morning, Saber... Can I?" He pleaded with a pointed finger as if he was child trying to select his favorite toy from his parent.

"Help yourself, Natsu... I originally prepared all of this for you." Saber sincerely replied with a smile.

"Really? Thanks, Saber! For once I get to eat without doing cooking for everyone." He talked for a moment before grabbing a pair of chopsticks at the side of the bowl and simply clasped his hands together and bowed.

"Itadakimasu!" With that said, Natsu hastily dug in. He took the chopsticks laid beside the bowl and simply split it before digging in. A sound of slurping was all Saber could hear as the pinkette simply ate without saying much of a word. A small smile crept into her lips.

"Please, be careful while you eat, Natsu... You might choke yourself." She lightly reminded.

"Ish ohkway... I ghot it." He replied while having his mouth full of his food.

A few minutes passed as Natsu finally finished all his cooking and eventually sat back to pat his filled stomach. His face was making some sort a goofy smile as he looked towards Saber.

"Thanks, Saber... That was delicious. I didn't know you could cook."

"Your welcome but my skills aren't that as good as you, Natsu... I personally prefer your cooking over mine." She admitted as she sat across the table with her knees bent before looking at her master for a brief moment. Unlike from what other masters she encountered before, Natsu wasn't as serious and all that tense despite the responsibility of being a magi chosen to participate in the grail war weighed down upon him.

He didn't like it of course but with things forced unto him, he didn't have much of a choice. Blindly accepting the role, he took responsibility of everything without giving any careful insight towards it.

"Natsu..." Saber suddenly spoke which caught his attention in the process.

"Yeah?"

"Do you really wish nothing for the Holy Grail?" Natsu could only frown at the topic but he knew that he wanted to at least answer her seriously on this.

"No, I don't have. Is it really weird for one master to not desire any wish from it?"

"Not that I think of but it was my first time having a master with no desires."

"I see... Well, that's just being me, you know. And plus, my only wish is to live my life together with my family and friends. That is all." He solemnly spoke as Saber listened to him carefully.

"... If ever, I would also like to wish for the grail's destruction." He continued but Saber widened her eyes in surprise after hearing that from him.

"What are you saying, Natsu?"

"Well, ever since I heard about the history of this grail war, it already involves too much on people's lives. I want it to end it right here."

"But even so, Natsu... That's a not plausible answer to those things." Saber protested.

"No, this is the only way... I will destroy that grail with these own hands." He clenched his fists tightly as his face became dead serious which slightly startled the golden-haired knight.

"Master, there is also one thing that I must say to you. The grail itself can never be destroyed by physical means. Only servants can do that kind of task as they're capable of doing so."

"What do you mean by that?" He asked curiously. His eyes darted over to the female knight in confusion.

"Only us, servants had the capability in destroying the grail itself."

"Then, it is okay for us.. With you, there shouldn't be any-" He was stopped as Saber cut his statement.

"And what if we refuse? What will you do, Natsu?" She looked at him seriously as if she wanted hear out his own statement here. She knows that she starting to become hard on him but in the same time, she knew that Natsu isn't really prepared or rather not quite ready to answer everything if the situation calls for it. Even though he said about protecting everyone, including his family and friends, he does not have any purpose. It was merely an act of safeguarding someone.

She wanted to know what is he fighting for.

"Well, that's-" Natsu felt unable to speak to her at the moment as he tried to take a moment to think about what she said. Despite his stutters, Saber continued.

"You have the command seal with you... Are you going to force me to destroy it if I don't want to?"

"Of course, I won't but... ... ... it's just that too hard for me to choose.

"Then that is the problem right there, Natsu... You are incapable of choosing hard decisions when you are in that kind of situation. You lack the confidence, the integrity, the will to choose your own. Your feelings obscure you from your right path." Saber pressed on but just she was about to talk more, Natsu immediately cut her off.

"WHAT'S WRONG ABOUT HAVING FEELINGS?! Everyone has one way or another to think through their decisions without discarding them wholly, Saber. That's very sole reason that makes us fully human..." He gritted his teeth, unaware that his anger is getting the best of him. Saber could only look in surprise at his expression giving some of rage within.

"But choosing the right decision and acting them out without your feelings interfering them is the best solution in most critical situations-"

"You're wrong... It's true that your way of thinking gives you the best solution but... ... ... that is only you thinking that it was the right thing to do. You never shared the feelings of others, never interact with them and never understand them fully..."

"If you kept thinking that way, you'll never know how much you've hurted your friends and the people around you."

It was then Saber had stopped talking as she heard him talk back to her with his own reasoning. As those words somehow struck her memories back when she was still King of Britain.

She remembered it all.

A field of corpses lying around in the red and battle-torn field. A mountain of corpses stretched as far as eyes could see. And among the center was a lone woman knight, kneeling with her sword stuck on the ground. Her mind devoid of emotion as she looked through the skies in wonder of her life. She wondered about her own decisions on how she carried the name of her country.

Was it a right thing? Does her actions justify to what was happening to her country right now?

Yet those questions were answered in blank air.

Saber clenched her fists in frustration as she somehow find it hard to answer to Natsu's question. She wanted to correct everything that she deemed wrong in the past. She wanted to change he fate of her country. That's why she wanted to claim the grail. To undo her past and make everything right.

"I'm heading off to school..." Natsu suddenly spoke as he stood up from his seat and simply grabbed his uniform and went outside.

"N-Natsu-"

"Don't think about following me... I want to be alone, Saber. As your master, can you do that?" He spoke blankly before going through the gate.

At the same time, Taiga and Sakura happened to be in the area as well. Both of them gave a happy and cheerful expression after a seeing the pinkette in the morning.

"Natsu! I missed you!" Taiga called out for a passionate hug but Natsu simply avoided her and walked continuously ahead of them which surprised the two in the process.

"Natsu... ..." Sakura muttered inwardly as she watched his figure disappear into a corner before looking back to Saber who was at the entrance of the door, worrying for her own safety but at the same time, solemn after seeing her master disappear from her.

* * *

 _ **Homurahara Highschool... ...**_

It was a rather troubling day for Natsu lately. After going to school, he simply wandered around the hallway to clear his head. Grumbling and muttering about his heated argument with Saber earlier. Honestly, why does she think that way? Even though she was a spirit, she couldn't display just a simple act of being a normal human being.

True enough, she was a human before but Natsu couldn't understand why she always so against about the feelings of people. It is as if she discarded her own for that matter.

Shaking off the disturbing thought, Nats continued to walk. Eventually, he found his way up again to the rooftop and simply rested himself at the ledge to sleep and rest. He didn't care about class right now. Even if the teacher wants him there, he wouldn't have agreed anyway. There's too much things that are left unanswered in his mind.

The Grail War, Tohsaka and her Servant and the dream he had a few days back.

He wanted to rest just relieve him from this stress. It's just too damn noisy and irritating to think something like that. Sooner or later, they would be fighitng against another master since the grail war doesn't stop from there just to wait for its contending players. The seven magi have been chosen and were already ready to fight. It would be only a matter of time before one of the masters would take a move on him.

But seeing the situation right now between him and Saber, he'll have the higher chance of dying fast. He didn't plan to die in this war rather he was going to destroy all of it. He'll need to eliminate it all without costing everyone's lives in the process. Kiritsugu already told him about saving people that one alone cannot save all of them yet he's gonna prove him wrong. He'll face this war with his own power and destroy the Grail once and for all.

He simply rested for at least four hours to calm himself in the process without saying anything. He'd rather want to spend his time sleeping peacefully than tackling into some heroic spirit whose power is abnormally high for that of a human. If what Tohsaka said was true the other day, then he must've gotten a lot of beating from Berserker. It was a miracle he survived alone. The class of the servant was simply enough to shiver his spine.

Come to think of it, he haven't seen Rin around. Probably she stayed in her house since everything that happened between him and her the other night. She devising a new plan on how to kill him but he can't be sure. At least, he wanted to believe that they're still on good terms without the discussion of the Grail War being brought about.

Slowly shifting his feet back to the cement floor, Natsu walked down the rooftop and went downstairs to find the twin-tailed girl. He wanted to at least thank her for giving her knowledge about the war and also the treatment the other day. If she hadn't been there then he would've died.

On the side note, much of his senses have become more sharper than ever since the war started. Probably because of his unknown power back then which is somehow related to his newly grown canines on the back of his teeth. Actually now that you think about it, it doesn't really look bad at all. Might be awesome for him to just let it slide it for now to show off his badass image but in a wider perspective, he looked like a predator.

It was then, he managed to pick up her scent as he turned around and saw her coming down to the stairs, connected to the hallway. Oddly enough, Rin widened her eyes in surprise after seeing his presence in school as if she was shocked to find him here.

"Yo! Tohsaka... Just wanted to thank you the other day. It was a great help." He smiled in his toothy grin. It was then she shot a slightly murderous glare at him which caused him to refrain his bright attitude her and stopped midway. She simply brushed past him and ignored everything he said which caused him to become confused all of a sudden.

"I wonder what's wrong with her?" He muttered confusingly before being approached by another person.

"Natsu-kun!" It was Taiga.

"Oh, it's good seeing you here, Fuji-ne-ACK!" He wasn't given the time to react as Taiga simply slammed a folded paper to his head, mainly because he probably did something wrong today.

"What was that for?!" He glowered at the English teacher with scorn while touching his head gingerly.

"That was for cutting classes... Where were you? You've missed three subject and I get complaints from the other teachers because of your tardiness." She reasoned with an angry expression.

"I fell asleep at the rooftop... Haven't gotten enough sleep." Natsu could only scratch his head as a form of his excuse.

"That doesn't mean that you don't have to attend to the class, Natsu-kun." She continued her scolding as he left them on blank looks while listening though barely. "Here..."

She handed a small paper to him in which he begun reading it in the process before realizing what the letter was all about.

"A notice for parents?"

"Yep! Unfortunately, with the series of frequent murders in the area made the school to plan this letter for the students to go home early for their own safety." Taiga frowned at the thought. As much as she wanted to end the crisis, there's isn't anything for her to do since she was a teacher and delving into murders and homicide incidents can only bring even more destruction.

The peace maintained in this town is simply being threatened with these murders and a teacher like her could only at least help her students steer clear away from trouble.

..

..

"Anyway, what was the fuss earlier back at the house? You left without saying anything or even not greeting us when we came inside. Did something happen?" She asked curiously but Natsu could only frown at the question as he glanced away from her.

"It's nothing to be worried about... I can take care of myself." He spoke in a weird tone of seriousness and unhappy one which was unusual for her to hear since Natsu always had that carefree and laid-back personality including on how he handles things in his own way. This is actually the first time she saw her unhappy or displeased about something. And she knew that it must be related to Saber since she saw her worried look back at the house when Natsu stormed out of the house and went ahead of them.

Even so, it was not in her place to just pry on anyone's private matters, including Natsu.

Smiling softly towards him, Taiga could pat his shoulder before saying something.

"Alright... I will not ask you to say something about it... But at least let me tell you something, you better fix it soon rather than letting it go further until it's too late, Natsu." She softly spoke before finally walking away towards the room where he was supposed to go to. Natsu could only look at her oddly before shaking down his head to think deeply.

That's right... Maybe he was just being too much on her today. He didn't even considered listening the reason of why she thought like that to the feelings of others so he guessed that he was at fault in here.

Clenching his fist with a renewed gaze, Natsu simply went inside the room and spent the rest of the time in studies and lectures.

...

...

...

It was already lunch time and Natsu was feeling hungry more than ever. Despite eating too much on his breakfast, it wasn't enough to satisfy his hunger. With the students leaving out of the classroom to the cafeteria, the pinkette simply joined in to tag along the way. It was not long before another familar voice resounded from behind that caught his attention and glanced back, only to see Shinji with a couple of girls following behind him.

"Yo! Emiya!" He called out with a hint of superiority on his tone which slightly irritated him to no end yet he maintain his composure.

"What is it, Shinjicchi?" He return with a joke of his name which caused him to stutter and the few girls to giggle at his response.

"W-Why you... Is that how you greet a friend in this time of the morning?"

"Yeah..." He blankly replied without any care at all. Again, another girl from the his group giggled at his stupid response. Honestly, it was just fun seeing Shinji getting teased and made fun infront of his so-called girls' group.

Well considering that he conquers half of the girls in the school, it was a lot of opportunity to pull in a prank on him and laugh inwardly. However, he ought to not push any further now that he's getting frustrated against him. Man, this guys can't really take a joke or two.

"Kugh... Listen up, Emiya... I did not come here just to have make fun of me. Remember your place ex-member." He replied with hostility, not wanting to let his pride be crushed. Natsu could only sigh deeply before scratching the back of his head and looked at the curly blue-haired student with a tired look.

"You're still going on about that? I already told you, I quit the club because I got too bored." However, his statement didn't calm his frustration.

"Tch, are you looking down on me?"

"Where did you even get that mixed up? I just said I got bored. I'm not saying the club is weak. It just not suits me." He admitted.

"Hmph... Anyway, I only came here to thanks for cleaning the dojo for me the other day... Everyone had a good time so they're probably expressing their gratitude to you too-" Before he could even explain further, he was interrupted by a heavy sigh from the pinkette who simply shrugged his shoulders.

"Cut the crap already, Shinji... You just told them that you cleaned it all even though it was me who did it."

"How did you-"

"Not that I care about it... At least I got to see something spectacular and annoying last night and now I'm stuck in this mess I got myself into." He explained discreetly as he recalled his first encounter with the heroic spirits before having Saber by his side and unlocking his power in the process. Those things are just a pain in the ass. And he didn't want any of them to reach here in school.

Sighing again with depression, Natsu went past them and began his way to the cafeteria to eat.

"Oi! Emiya! I'm talking to you!" Shinji tried to call him back but he simply passed a wave and disappeared into a corner. He gritted his teeth in frustration as his expression turned into anger, mainly directed to the pinkette for making him a laughing stock in front of everyone.

"That guy was handsome though... What's his name?"

"Emiya Natsu..." He overheard her 'girls' talking about him in which he immediately turned around the refuted their outlook on him.

"Don't fall into his trap... That guy's an idiot."

"Is that so? He sounded pretty cool to me..." One of the girls giggled but Shinji had enough and simply raised his voice to silence her.

"Enough! I'm cooler than him... There's no way he would be cooler than me." And with that they moved on to the other direction as they continued on their previous ventures.

Another few minutes had passed and Natsu went through the corridor to get some food until another familiar person came to interrupt his journey. Slapping himself inside his thoughts, the person in front of him was the last person he does not want to see at the moment, Issei Ryuudou.

"Hey, Emiya... I was wondering if you could-"

 ***SLAM***

Natsu slammed his head to the side of the wall with a very tired expression.

"Gimme a break already..."

* * *

 _ **Afternoon... School Corridor.**_

Natsu simply walked around the empty hallway as he passed through many empty classroom, hoping to find himself some space to sleep. Students have already went home due to the new school rule that lessened their school activities that has been announced a few days ago, thanks to the recent murder incidents happening around the town. Teachers feared for the safety of their students so they advised their students to go home early as possible.

Despite those warnings, Natsu didn't care. He wasn't in the mood to go home where Saber is at the moment. He didn't feel like coming home for awhile since he had to think some things regarding about the current situation. He could always go home when Sakura and Taiga had came in to help him out in the house. At least, that would lessen the tension between him and Saber for the time-being.

Sighing for the umpteenth time, the seventh magus went on his way towards the hallway. Whistling faintly through the silent hall, Natsu slowly trudged along before stopping for a moment and took a good look at the window beside him and gazed at the school courtyard.

The place where everything started and how he did get dragged into this ridiculous war.

Come to think of it, if he could use the time to wander around in school and try to find some other students still around the campus, he could use the opportunity to save as much people as he can to prevent them from being dragged into the fight.

But being a magi, he would undoubtedly attract unwanted attention from other master or even worse, Servants.

"Guess, I have no choice..." He finally decided to make a turn from the stairs and began his journey until he stopped in his tracks before noticing a presence of a person on the stairs leading upwards to the rooftop.

His eyes widen in surprise as he managed to find Rin around which makes him glad. However, she kinda wearing a very intimidating look despite being a girl.

"Yo, Tohsaka... It was nice seeing you here." Natsu asked but was not answered by her as she continued to glare down on him like he did something stupid or wrong that would actually piss her off. Recollecting his thoughts for a brief moment before stopping since he can't seemed to find it.

"Anyway, you've been silent this all morning... I just wanted to say thanks for the other day... Isn't that much of a problem?"

It was then Rin finally spoke while silently chuckling underneath her breath.

"Amazing... To think that you would be here without a servant when the war had already started."

"Come on... Why bringing up that bothersome topic, aren't we allies?"

"Allies?!" She sounded sarcastic as she looked back at him with hostility. "Did I tell you before? The next time we meet, we're enemies."

"Slack down, will ya? At least give me a break from this war... It's not like some master is gonna jump on me in this place... I mean, this is a school why would they assault me if there are people around?" He replied nonchalantly.

"True, but in this current situation where most of the students are gone and you're facing another master, isn't that a bit strange to you?" She described the situation which somehow surprised the pinkette.

"Hey, you were gonna kill me, aren't you?" He guessed as he finally sensed her murderous intent towards him. Rin could only give a brief sigh towards her opponent.

"Really, you are the stupidest master I'd ever met... It took you too long to just realize that you were in this kind of situation." She began placing her open hand towards Natsu before creating a dark red ball of magic and gave him one last glance.

"... Oh well, it was fun while it lasted but this is the end of the line for you, Emiya Natsu." Leaving those words, she shot out the magic towards him in seemingly blinding speeds. However, thanks to his sharper senses, Natsu was able to barely dodge that spell which left a small explosion upon contact, leaving a destroyed floor as a result. Judging from that attack, it was lethal for any normal human being when hit by something like that.

"You... really are serious about this?"

"Does it look like that I'm making fun of what's happening? Stay still Emiya-kun!" Intricate marking appeared on her left arm before summoning multiple magic orbs that soon shot out towards him in which he easily dodged effortlessly, making her to grit in frustration as he got away.

 _'His reflexes are so damn good. I can't even hit him in one bit.'_

It was then a figure seemingly appeared out of thin air beside her which was Archer who was wearing a displeased look on his face. He's been waiting for all this time for his master to eliminate Natsu but for some reason, it was taking so long.

"What's wrong, Rin? Can't even take out a novice magus?"

"I already told you before... He's not just a novice magus. He has something special within him and it won't be easy for me to kill him." She replied.

"Then, I'll handle the job... If you can't kill shortly, might as well send me to do the task. That boy is not match for a Servant."

"Stand down, Archer. I will be the one who will kill him... Plus, is you really think that he's no match for a Servant then you're denying the fact that he actually fought Berserker." She replied coldly before walking in down the path to follow the pinkette, leaving the knight in red unconvinced and unhappy with her decision.

..

..

Natsu breath a sigh of relief for the first after those first few minutes of battle with Tohsaka earlier. He hid himself over to the empty classroom to rest and think about the current situation. Thinking back about his assumption of being safe in school from the Grail War was completely wrong now that he found himself at the mercy of Rin. This is probably a seek-and-destroy thing and he's on the disadvantage.

Really, fuck this Grail War... Leave me in peace.

Well, it can't be helped. If that's how she would play things straight in this, he'll just have to return as much as he can to fight her. Even without Saber here, he will have to do everything in his power to defeat Rin. Clenching his fist in determination, Natsu peeked over to table to see if there's anything suspicious around. He tried using his nose to track her scent and immediately found her just at the door as if she was waiting for him to come out.

"What an idiot... Like that would save you from this."

 **"Das Schließen Vogelkäfig... Echo!"** Chanting in a language that Natsu doesn't know, Rin simply placed magical barrier around the room that soon created a magical circle and spread around as Natsu alarmed himself to try and jump out to the window before the barrier enclosed him inside the room. Unfortunately, he was too late as he was left to face-plant himself from the seemingly impenetrable barrier.

"Cool... So this is what a magus looks li-TEH! This is not the time to be impressed!" He cursed himself as he looked back in alarm.

 **"Fixierung, Eilesalve!"** Another chant came from Rin as a magical circle appeared once again and released a barrage of dark red beams that tore everything into shreds, including the tables and desk which makes it a very lethal spell.

Clasping his hands in flames, Natsu simply thrust his arm momentarily before shouting his own spell.

 **"Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!"** Slamming down the floor with his flame-coated fist, Natsu brought himself down to the collapsing part of the floor to avoid the barrage. Thanks to the force of his fist, it gradually shook the entire building which caused Rin to widen her eyes in alarm as she stopped her spell and hastily blasted the door, only to find a small hole from it where the pinkette had probably escaped to.

"Y-You kidding me!"

Leaving that stuttered shout upstairs, Natsu quickly ran away as soon as possible before turning in to another hallway in which he had to run to the other side to flee. However, he was stopped when Rin came on the opposite direction in a matter of seconds, surprising him in the process.

"You were really smart, I give you that... To think that you would actually make your way out by collapsing the part of the floor and went down." She remarked momentarily before pointing her magic-imbued hand towards him.

"Kugh-"

"This is the end... Emiya!" She shot out a dark beam towards him but was deflected easily as Natsu skillfully swiped his flame-clad hands to deflect its trajectory towards him, shocking the twin-tailed master in the process.

"W-What?"

"Like I told you before, I don't want to fight you but if that's really you want then I'll guess I'll have to get serious this time... I'll make sure that I would hit that head of yours until you finally conceded defeat and join me to fight against other masters." Rin could only laugh mockingly at his declaration.

"Ha! Join you! The Grail War is meant to kill and eliminate each other until only one is left standing. In this fight, there would be no such allies."

"Really? Allow me to prove it wrong for you, Tohsaka." He grinned as he engulfed himself in flames while Tohsaka simply pointed her magic crest towards him. Giving themselves another second to look at each other, both magi locked their targets and prepared themselves on another battle clash.

"Heh, I'm all fired up!"

But before they could even fight, a distressed female scream resounded through the hallway, interrupting their battle focus as Natsu dissipated his flames while Rin lowered her arm and they noticed someone was still inside the campus.

"Damn it... Why at a time like this?" Rin cursed as she recomposed herself and stared to the window to find the source but to no avail.

"A student... Here?" Natsu spoke in disbelief as he tried to pick up the source of its voice. It was not long before he ignored his battle with Rin and tried to run to the source and sprinted away.

"H-Hey, Emiya-kun! Where do you think you're going?!" Rin shouted as she followed him down and went outside.

It didn't take a few minutes for them approach to the scene until they found a female student lying on the ground with her books and papers scattered around the floor. Rin made it in time as she saw Natsu checking out her pulse which seemed to be okay as he found no such injury or anything that would endanger the girl's life. Sighing in relief, Natsu wiped a bead of sweat from his forehead, seemingly due to his nervousness and worried expression towards the student.

The twin-tailed mage simply stood there before them with her arms crossed as she observed the pinkette for a moment and then to the unconscious student.

"It looks like she was just passed out... Nothing too serious here." Natsu concluded. But Rin's expression was different as she saw the state of the student's face.

"Are you dumb? She isn't just unconscious... She was also drained by her life force."

"What?" He asked curiously.

She walked over to him and knelt down to check her state.

"Her mana but I'd like to call it life force since having lack of it simply causes her to lose blood in the process. If we don't do something about it, she'll die." Hearing the word simply made him to widen his eyes in disbelief and clenched his fist in anger.

"What do you mean by that?!"

"Calm down... I'll just have to stabilize her body with this gem." She took out one small gem from her pocket and held it on her hand before placing above the girl and simply glowed out her magic. The girl coughed roughly as she somehow got herself finally stabilized in the time-being.

As she was healing the student, Natsu noticed a presence from the forested area to his left before narrowing his eyes in suspicion. It was then he finally noticed it and widened his eyes in alarm as he tried to move his hand to catch the incoming projectile aimed to the twin-tailed magus.

"Tohsaka! Look out!" He shouted briefly as Tohsaka was left to only close her eyes in the process, seemingly succumbed in her imminent death by impalement but no such stab came as Natsu caught a sharp object attached to a chain by hand and smirked.

"W-What was that?" She stuttered in response as she saw it become invisible and disappeared.

"Got you now! Fucking Servant-Eh? Ooowaaaa!" He tried to pull it hard until another stronger force sent him flying towards the direction instead of pulling it himself.

"Emiya-kun!"

"Don't worry about me! Go get the girl to the infirmary! I'll deal with this." He shouted briefly before disappearing into the woods as the chain dragged him along with it since he doesn't want to let go of his hold of the chain.

Making his way to the forest, Natsu let go of the chain and crashed to the ground before finding himself unto a spot where he could be ambushed at any time. He used his senses to try and track any sort of movements coming out from his vicinity.

He soon noticed a presence on his right as he glanced around and saw a mysterious person flying towards him in sonic speeds that caused him to summon himself in flames before punching away a sharp object aimed through his eyes. Sparks flew as Natsu deflected the attack as the mysterious person landed with her body sinking down in formation as chains rattled and moved around like ropes which caused him to be alarmed. Judging from her looks and appearance, he'd say that she's one of the servants summoned in the Grail War.

"I'm impressed." She spoke blankly before leaping out to the air and disappeared on sight.

Again, Natsu was left on the defensive as he moved into his battle stance and focused on his surroundings. It was then another speeding sound of chain came ringing to his ears before giving a backflip to avoid the dagger from stabbing him.

"I'm surprised... To think that there would be a master who has the capability of facing a servant alone in a long time... Unlike my master who was cowardly, you seemed to show some courage and determination to win this through." She spoke.

"Heh... If Saber would be here, she would called it stupid but who knows, maybe I'm just being stupid for facing such a renowned spirit whose power is beyond that of a human being."

"Aren't you going to use the Command Seal?"

"Unfortunately no... I had a rather falling out with Saber today so I'll just do on what I can to fight. Plus, I'm running out of Command Seals. Calling her here is a pain in the head." He slightly chuckled.

"Ah, if that's the case, then I'll have to change my tactic... I shall give you a merciful death..." With that she leaped out once again, brushing off leaves on her previous position as Natsu looked over to the branch and saw her disappeared until he found her coming towards him in blinding speeds.

Deflecting another one of her attacks, the servant simply delivered a spinning high kick in response which caused him to stagger a bit from the force of it before dodging another one as he ducked beneath and tried to summon flames in his elbow to propel his fist upwards.

 **"Fire Dragon's Flame Elbow!"** He shouted briefly as his fist went to her stomach and sent her flying but easily recovered before disappearing once again before appearing herself in front of her with a safe distance with each other.

It was then Natsu finally got a good look on her appearance. She had a long purple hair that reaches all the way down to her feet. Her eyes were seemingly covered together, making him to assume that she was relying on other senses other than her eyesight. Her costume was also unorthodox since it was different compared to a normal modern clothing today. A partially drawn marking is seen of her forehead which made her an even more mysterious servant.

"I'm surprised... That was an impressive display of magic... It seems like you were not just an ordinary magus."

"Judging from your actions, you seemed to lack a good punch... Seems like you're not strong enough to face to even face a fellow servant in battle." Natsu teased, hoping to lose her concentration. This tactic has been on his mind since he started fighting. He knows it's underhanded but it works well on other people but he can't be sure on Servants though ans this is his first time using it to them.

Slightly clenching her daggers, the servant simply shook her head before raising her head once again to face the pinkette.

"No... This is the end for you... You've been playing into my hands a long time." She suddenly declared.

"Wha-" Natsu wasn't given the time to react as two invisible chains circled around him and pinned him towards a tree, thus immobilizing him from doing anything as the woman walked towards her.

"Now, then... What was that amusing thing you were saying before?" She reminded before stopping before him.

"... That I'm not as good as the other servants out there. That I'm inferior? That won't do at all so I'll just have to pluck your eyes out which were so dearly mistaken and then I'll rip out your limbs to make you even more miserable."

"Ummm, what happened about the merciful death."

"Change of plans... I''ll have to return as much pain as I want. I wonder what would Saber reaction would be if I return of what was left of your remains." She spoke evilly but Natsu could only stifle a toothy grin which somehow confused her.

"What are you grinning about?"

"Heh, I got you where I wanted you to be." He spoke before inhaling in his lungs as light streams of fire entered his mouth before giving out a slurping sound as the servant was left unguarded as Natsu charged his spell.

 **"Fire Dragon's Roar!"** Shouting briefly, the pinkette let out a massive streams of fire in point-blank range that soon engulfed the servant wholly in flames until it went further and leveled the entire area into a scorching earth. Chains around him dispersed as Natsu landed on his feet before looking viciously at the burnt servant who simply stood a few meters before him with slightly burnt marks all over her body.

"I'm surprised... You really are an interesting master. I guess I'll have to recognize you as a worthy enemy."

"Bring it." Natsu taunted.

But before she could even attack a second time. Multiple beams caught her attention as the servant leaped away from the pinkette as Rin and Archer came into view with the latter holding an intricate black bow on his hands.

"Tohsaka! Archer!" Natsu smiled in relief.

"Emiya-kun, are you alright?" Rin sprinted towards him as the mysterious servant simply back away before disappearing into sight, leaving the battle unfinished. Archer lowered his bow and simply walked towards the duo with a very disappointed look on his face.

Rin simply stood beside Natsu and saw some slight bruises and scratches from his fight from the servant. She was relieved that it didn't happen to be a one-sided battle between him and her.

"Stay still. I'll have to use something heal those wounds..." She insisted.

"A-Ah, okay... Thanks." A light glow came from her hand as the magic gave off a soothing feeling towards that part of the wound in which it healed fast as the wound was simply removed like it was nothing. She then proceeded to heal his bruises as she continued her treatment.

"First, Berserker and then another one? Just how lucky are you? You've faced two servants alone without the help of Saber... You really are something Emiya Natsu." Rin remarked as a smile went over to her lips while Natsu could only tilt his head in confusion.

"I'd go for lucky... I almost died though if it weren't for you." He smiled warmly that caused her to stutter in the process.

"D-Don't go saying such things... I-Idiot." She muttered but Natsu could only put up a light sigh.

"Anyway, she got away though... I didn't get enough information about her master so we're back to square one."

"That's not important... It was a relief that you're alive and kicking. That much is enough for me."

"What's with the concern about me? You were just about giving me a death glare a few minutes ago." Natsu deadpanned.

"Well, of course, idiot... If you die then I'll have no one to vent out my anger." She reasoned in which he sweatdropped in response.

After a few minutes of healing him, Rin wiped off a bead of sweat from her forehead as she slightly backed away from him and took a good look at his current state. It would seemed like he was already okay. She lowered her shoulders with a calm sigh before crossing her arms in irritation.

"More importantly, don't go running off in your own next time. At least, wait for me to get there." She huffed.

"I was dragged by the way though." He blurted out.

But just about they were done clearing things, Natsu hastily glanced about and caught a shortsword aimed towards his shoulders as he glared over to Archer who was wearing a murderous look against him as if he was his enemy. Archer widened his eyes in surprise as he found him catching his blade by hand.

Gritting his teeth in frustration Natsu summoned flames on his elbow before engulfing his right arm fully with the same element as launched it towards him.

 **"Fire Dragon's Flame Elbow!"** His fist easily broke through the shortswords much to the Servant's shock as the fist connected to his face and sent him flying before recovering in midair before landing down to a branch. Rin was also shocked to find her servant suddenly attacking Natsu all of a sudden.

"What are you doing, Archer?!" She demanded though was ignored by him and simply focused on the pinkette.

"Just what kind of power is that, Saber's master?" He asked-no, more like demanding him an answer.

"Like hell would I know and if you're gonna ask question, do it with your mouth and not with your weapon." Natsu glowered.

"Tch..." He cluck his tongue in irritation before pointing the sword towards the pinkette. "I don't know what kind of power you have but I'll eliminate you.." He dashed towards the pinkette who in turn simply engulfed himself in flames, seemingly ready for a fight until-

"STOP IT RIGHT THERE!" Both males stopped their heated battle as they looked over to the twin-tailed girl who had her arms in her waist with a very unhappy look on her face.

"Tohsaka..."

"Archer stand down... I'll have something to discuss about Emiya-kun privately so return to your reconnaissance on other masters..." She firmly spoke as Archer stood for a few moments before finally conceding defeat and followed his master's orders before disappearing into sight.

Natsu felt the need to breath again after that encounter with another Servant. Seriously, why was he always being targeted by Servants?

"I'm sorry for that, Emiya-kun... It seems like I troubled you back there." She apologized.

"Nah, it's fine... More importantly, what was the thing you want to talk about?"

"Ah, that... It was lie to at least get Archer from our backs."

"You don't trust him?"

"It's not a matter of trust. It just seemed so uneasy if he were to be here and listen to our conversation. Not to mention, his hostility against you." She reminded.

"Thanks for saving me again..."

"Nope, we're just even... But it seemed that I owe you more than what you owe me." She smiled as she dusted her clothes off until Natsu simply began to returned to his stance, seemingly aware of what she was getting at. Oddly enough, Rin could only look at him in confusion after seeing him being alert all of a sudden. His face full with vigilance which makes her uneasy all of a sudden.

"Why are you staring me like that?" She asked.

"W-Well, I was talking about our fight... It got interrupted, right? Wanna keep going at it?" He replied. At first, Rin was confused before giving a deep sigh and smiled back to him.

"No, let's end it here... Plus, I owe you again. There's also a matter of the new servant so we'll discuss it at my place." She turned around but Natsu didn't get of what she was saying.

"Your place?"

"Yeah... Let's get going. We don't anymore Master taking a move on us. Don't worry about the girl earlier, I made it in time to the infirmary and she'll be okay from now on." And with that she walked away as Natsu reluctantly followed her. He had no other choice. With things turning sour with the two of them, they needed to establish some foothold and take a mindful observation to analyze the situation. Plus, he's so tired to argue so it wouldn't be bad to just tag along with her.

* * *

 ** _Tohsaka Household... ..._**

Unlike from other Japanese houses near his residence, Rin's mansion was seemingly large and Westernized. All of the things inside and its interior were foreign and luxurious. Well, it is to be expected to a rich family since her family name is known throughout the countries associated with organization that he didn't bother to know. Soft plushy chairs and beds are seen in rooms with many designs that may it seemed like a collection of antiques and relics of a certain ancient civilization.

Natsu simply sat on the chair in the living room before standing up and took a look on the paintings designed by seemingly artistic painters as he saw its vivid image of famous landmarks while some are simply abstract, portrayed with the painter's emotions.

"Stop looking too much or you would find yourself unable to stir away from it." Rin joked.

"R-Right..." He nodded before going back to his seat near the table with Rin sitting beside him, having her hands placed near her chin to ponder about the situation.

"So what's the situation?"

"Seeing a servant near the school grounds, I could only conclude that there's another master in the campus... doing the same thing to that girl." She assumed.

"Why would they do that?" Natsu asked.

"To win the Holy Grail War, of course." She revealed. "... Their mission is to use the students' life force to strengthen their servants." It was then Natsu finally narrowed his eyes in frustration.

"Just how far are they gonna keep doing that kind of thing?"

"Yeah, I feel the same way too. I don't want anyone to be involved in the Grail War and having them being used as mere foods to the servants' growing power. I have my own sense of humanity stored in me. Watching them all getting suffered from it, makes my blood boil." The twin-tailed girl gritted her teeth in frustration as she looked down on the table, thinking about the innocent people who were unfortunate to have been sucked out from their life force just for the sake of strengthening their servants to win.

"We have to do something about this... If this keeps on, then many people will die in this meaningless war." Natsu declared.

"I know that... Plus, there's already a Bounded Field placed on the school grounds and it's impossible for us to destroy it since we need to be careful in approaching it. That could serve as their trap and their opportunity to take us out since we're both masters... And at the same time, it would weaken all the people around the school and die from it so we can't be too careless about it." She explained as she bit her lip to think something.

"So what are we going to do?"

..

..

..

"I know it may be stupid of me to ask something like this but... ... Emiya, would you agree to call it a truce with me?" As if her question immediately sunk in his thoughts as Natsu tried for confirmation.

"Truce.. you mean... Between you and me." She nodded.

"I want to deal with this Master first. So I was suggesting if we could team up in the time being and help me track them down. That would benefit for the both of us, right?" She sincerely smiled.

"Well, I think it's a bad idea but can I really trust you?" He looked at her for a moment.

"Of course, you can... Plus, I'm indebted to you so I'll do whatever I can to repay you somehow."

"You're making me seemed like a debt collector again."

"It's. Not. Like. That!" She shouted. "Anyway, would you accept the truce or not?" She glanced away with a flustered face while Natsu simply smiled in return as he shook his head in content.

"Alright... I guess, it can't be helped." He spoke as she returned her gaze towards him.

"J-Just so you know, we're not allies or anything. This is merely a truce, remember?"

"I get it... As long as we're acting teammates for the time-being I won't do anything to betray you. I'm not that kind of person."

"Me too." She agreed.

"With the help of our servants, we may able to take the other Masters as well, don't you think?" Natsu guessed. Again, she stuttered as she saw his grinning face once again.

"I-I know that idiot..."

Well, now that we're on the same side, let's do our best, Tohsaka." He reached over a hand towards her which somehow caused her to stutter in response as she glanced away while fidgeting an all sides in her seat until finally calming down.

"H-Hmph... I-It won't be quite long for that but try to make yourself useful, Emiya." She reluctantly shook hands seemingly signifying the start of their temporary alliance against the enemy.

* * *

 **A/N: And stop. That conclude for the chapter. I'm very sorry for not updating early. I was just finished downloading the VN and am starting to play it recently and moving to Heaven's Feel route since I haven't made that route yet but I'll go to Fate and UBW as well. With that said, I'll be uploading some slow updates on this one since I haven't gotten much of the story despite reading and watching manga and anime respectively.**

 **Nevertheless, I'll never abandon this. I'll finish this through the end.**

 **I'll see you guys in the next chapter. PEACE :)**

 **\- wiErD SpeCtrumz blacking out... ... ...**


	7. Malice from the Shadows

**A/N: Hello, everyone. wiErD here. Here's the next chapter of the story. Hope ya like it.**

 **Have Fun and Happy Reading.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own FT and FSN. Credit goes to their respective owners.**

* * *

 **\- Malice from the Shadows -**

The cold and dark night descends over to Fuyuki City as the lights of the towns and other skyscrapers dotting the landscape shone bright in the distance. Different colours of light reflected through lakes and other bodies of water as the night passed.

The nocturnal creatures wander off the darkness while the cold breeze swept through the trees and leaves, bringing out the pleasant sound of nature.

Located in an isolated forest was a black-haired man dressed in a black robe with a white sash strapped within his waist. He sat ominously in the nearing trees as if he was waiting. The light of the moon reflected down on him reveals his black-hair and his somewhat emotionless face.

He stares up front towards the distant city in wonder. His body sat still as if he was like a statue.

It took only a few seconds for him to finally move his face slightly above, gazing the night sky with a lost thought.

And for the first time ever, he uttered words heard only by the wind around him.

 **"How long has it been?"** His monologue answered the space around him before a gust of wind swoop past by him in dark night.

Leaves fluttered pleasantly from the branches as the wind blows. No signs of animal is seen around the man as he slowly stood from the grass before facing his direction over to the city.

 **"I've finally found you, Natsu."**

As those words were spoken, a large dark mist surrounded the man and engulfed the area around him. And in just like that, trees and other signs of life vanished in an instant like plague of death sweeping over the whole place itself.

Withered plants and grasses resulted after that as the man disappears within the sphere of death before also vanishing from existence.

* * *

 ** _Meanwhile back at Emiya Residence…_**

Saber widened her eyes in surprise after feeling a sense of dread coming from the far distance away from the city. Her eyes gazed through the window before narrowing it in suspicion.

 _'What was that just now?'_ She thought out in disbelief after noticing its unusual aura. Not only that, the aura was strong enough to be reaching far from here and the presence of death can be felt in it too. That's something that would really alert her in the process since she never felt such a strong presence before.

She was on her current casual clothes given to her by Rin yesterday just before Natsu stormed out from the house earlier. She sat on an empty room in a kneeling position, thinking about something.

She thought about their argument earlier. It seems like she was a bit harsh on trying to win over his sense of justice. Although she respected that, she never really expected herself to push that far.

"It seems like I went a bit too far." She muttered to herself before looking down on her knees in wonder.

Her train of thought was immediately cut off as a familiar voice resounded from the entrance of the house.

"Master!" She gasped in surprise but also sprinted off towards the door to meet him. After all, he did storm off alone without her protecting him from danger.

Her speed to reach the door was very fast as it only took about a few seconds for her to reach her destination and open the door.

"Master!" She shouted in relief after seeing the pinkette alive and well but her eyes fell into suspicion after recognizing the other person right beside him.

"Yo, Saber." Natsu spoke so casually without even reminding of their argument earlier in the morning.

"Archer's Master… What business do you have here?" She asked with caution.

"Good evening, Saber. I'll be staying here again in the meantime so please take care of me." She bowed with formality without taking heed of the Servant's suspicion towards her.

"Staying?" Her eyes darted back to the pinkette who only scratched his head sheepishly.

"Well, how do I explain this?" He spoke to himself while Tohsaka simply made her way in and took off her shoes before glancing back to the two.

"I leave the explaining to you, Emiya-kun. I'll be taking a short bath." She waved them off together with her luggage in hand before disappearing in the corner of the hall.

The atmosphere fell silent between the two before Natsu began his conversation with the confused Servant.

"First off, let's prepare dinner then we'll talk, alright?" He puts up a light-hearted smile but Saber had a rather different reaction from his statement just now.

She tried to open her mouth to speak but momentarily decided against it, not wanting to remind him of what happened between them earlier, especially now that Rin is here with them. She nodded in response before following the pinkette back to the kitchen to prepare their dinner.

A few minutes passed and the two placed on both dishes on the table as Natsu began his cook on the back of the kitchen section while Saber simply helped on washing the other dishes that was left untouched the whole morning.

Both of them were silent with each other as the sound of faucet and raw food crackling from the heat covered the entire atmosphere though both of them seemed to think that they should speak about something.

Wanting to take the initiative, Natsu started out first.

"Hey, about what happened this morning…" He trailed off before pausing his current doings and looked at Saber who also looked back at him with anticipation.

"I'm sorry about earlier. I think I may have overreacted at that time and went out just like that." He apologized.

"No, it wasn't your fault! Even I was too concerned about the subject so I should be the one who is at fault!" She insisted.

"Then why don't we call it a truce then?" He suggested.

"A truce?" Her head titled in confusion at his suggestion.

"Yeah. Both of us were wrong and we both apologized with each other for that so we can now put that behind us. How's that kind of truce?" He asked in a playful tone which surprised her.

It only took her a few more seconds to think about it until she shook her head in response and looked at him with a smile.

"I guess, you're right."

"Well, I guess we can leave at that now."

"By the way, I wanted to ask about how you and Archer's Master met again. I remember her warning from before that she will deem you as her enemy the next time you meet her so why is she here with us again?" She asked curiously.

"Well, a lot of things happened back at school."

"A lot of things?"

"Yeah… A servant appeared and tried to kill us." He spoke though without realizing of that statement would actually surprise the blonde-haired knight. Though Natsu wouldn't really expect her to suddenly burst out in worry from the revelation.

"A Servant, you say? Why didn't you use the Command Seal to call me for help?!" She spoke rather in a furious tone which he didn't expect since this is the first time he actually saw her losing her composure.

"Well, Tohsaka and I were having a little bit of a scuffle before we got attacked. Plus, Tohsaka and Archer were there to help me just in time." He reassured though it was then Saber noticed the bandage wrapped on his right hand where he previously grabbed the chain spike aimed at Rin.

"Then that wound on your hand–"

"Relax, it's just a scratch. I'm not stabbed or anything. Well, at least almost that is." He gave off a rather dismissal tone on his voice after revealing that piece of information to her.

Without warning, she immediately grabbed his collar before putting up a rather serious gaze towards him.

"Master, this is not something you should play off as a normal thing. You were attacked by Berserker and almost died on Lancer just before I was summoned. What if the time comes when your luck runs dry and you're facing your imminent death?" She asked in unusually worried expression.

At that moment, Natsu stopped his current doings and thought about her question towards him.

That's right. He's been passing this whole war as some sort of an unrelated topic to him even though he made it clear to her back at the church that he would participate in this war.

He never really took the part of him as a master to be some sort of a serious matter. The events regarding his encounter with the life-threatening situations against Servants immediately made him realize that he's now fighting for his own survival as well.

He could not find the words he wanted to say to her after that realization of thought. Eventually, Saber let go of her hold and retreated back after seeing her statement finally went through his head.

"Alright… I'm sorry. I just have lot of things in my mind now recently." He apologized with a slightly irritated tone but later replaced it with a somber look.

"Please take heed of our current situation, Master. I'm only concerned at your safety. Servants are meant to protect their masters with all their might. If their master dies and so along with their Servants who fight for them."

"Yeah, I know. So much happened lately and I just cannot process them one at a time."

Saber released a sigh.

"Well, we can all discuss them later together with Rin."

"Speaking of which, she's sure taking her time." He looked away facing the hallway.

"I'll finish up here. You should go and call her here so that we can discuss about what's happened." Saber suggested in which he nodded in response before walking away from the kitchen and towards the empty hallway.

The house completely large and the only ones who are living here is him and Saber alone. The silence of the yard reaching a few meters away to the shed where he usually practices his magic he inherited from his late foster father continues to play along as the sound of the leaves fluttering from the branches accompanied its atmosphere.

It didn't take long for him to reach to a lit room on the outbuilding and opened its slide door to call her out.

"Tohsaka. Dinner's ready. We should discuss about what happened together with Saber-" His voice went down in a ritardando as he accidentally found himself facing a rather semi-naked woman right in front of him just as he opened the slide door.

Rin on the other hand, simply stood there frozen as if she stopped what she was doing and stared at the man in front of him who by the way, got a front seat to see her naked form in front him.

Neither both of them had anything to speak for each other until Natsu closed the door as if nothing happened.

"Sorry for intruding." He hastily left the hallway but not long before the doors broke down as Tohsaka went outside with a towel at hand. Her face rose up in high temperatures both mixed in embarrassment and anger towards the pinkette who simply ran away like a coward.

"YOU PERVERT!" She shouted before shooting out death spells at him with her fingers.

"I'm sorry!"

* * *

After the whole incident, Tohsaka finally settled on the table together with Saber and Natsu though with the latter having some bruises and bumps all over his face after his unexpected encounter with her naked form.

The girl was utterly pissed and could only huff in annoyance every time she stole a glance at the beaten up pinkette in front of her though she also showed hints of embarrassment since no man had ever had the chance to see her naked body. And if they do, they ended up dying in the worst case possible.

Natsu was fortunate but the pain was too much for him to handle and could only mutter in short phrases of apologizing at the girl. Saber on the other hand, remained unaffected by their antics as usual but concerned about the change on the pinkette's face.

"Not only you have a knack of getting yourself hurt but also you have a knack of interrupting someone's privacy." Rin spat in irritation.

"It was an accident. I'm sorry really." Natsu tried his best to apologize but Rin could only look away in annoyance.

"I hope you die one of these days." She cursed while huffing.

"We should start about discussing about what happened between you two earlier." It was then Saber began to speak, seemingly wanting to learn about the situation rather than what happened recently.

The two magi simply set aside their arguments and focused on the topic at hand.

"As I suspected, there's a Master lurking around our school except for us. I've noticed a boundary field set up throughout the school. It seems like the Master is trying to use his Servant to take all the life force of the students as replenishment of its powers." Tohsaka mumbled in a serious gaze.

At the same time, Saber's gaze also narrowed as the girl continued.

"Have you identified the Master's identity?" She asked.

"Unfortunately, no. I haven't got the time to search him because I can't detect any magus in the area. Plus, I was busy dispelling the runes set up around the school to slow the boundary field's completion." Tohsaka sighed with a tired expression.

"So what are we going to do?" Natsu asked worriedly.

"First, we should start up with a plan to identify the Master in our school. I've located another Master in Ryuudou Temple but this one has to come first." Before Tohsaka could even begin more of their conversation, Saber interrupted her.

"There's something that I would like to ask." She paused, catching the girl's attention.

"May I ask why are you helping us? From what I've heard, you said that we'll become enemies once we meet again, am I right?"

There was a light pause between them until Tohsaka spoke in response to her question.

"Ara, Emiya-kun and I had a deal to cease our hostilities against each other until we deal the Master in our school." She said so with a sneer.

Saber quickly glanced back to the pinkette.

"Is this true, Master?"

"Yeah, we've encountered one of the servants back at the school and we sort of formed a temporary alliance. I hope you would understand, Saber." Natsu reasoned.

"Well, I do understand but what I'm concerned about is you engaging a Servant again. I do understand well of your capability but a Master should let their Servants fight for them." She insisted.

"You should settle down, Saber. Although, it may not like it but Emiya-kun handled himself pretty well against it and I owe him for saving my life." Tohsaka spoke in place for him with slightly blushing face.

"Rin…" Natsu trailed off in thought as they both looked at her in wonder until she finally recomposed herself.

"A-Anyway, that's about it. Archer is still recovering and I can't use him yet to fully engage any Servant at the moment which is why cooperating with Emiya-kun provides good advantages for both sides, don't you think?"

"Certainly, that's true but I cannot just accept such help coming from a Master." Saber never let her guard down against the black-haired girl.

"It's up to you if you believe it or not. We'll start our search by tomorrow." Tohsaka stood up and went towards the hall but not long before she glanced back to the two to leave a statement.

"I'll be at the outbuilding. If you have any business with me, don't hesitate to come by. Plus, I think you should also start explaining some things to Saber too, Emiya-kun. Aside from your growing powers, you two should prepare some strategies of your own in the future. I can't be around with you all the time, you know." She advised.

"Alright, thanks for the tip." Natsu smiled warmly.

Although it was brief but somehow he was able to take a glimpse of her reddened face just after she glanced away and went to her room to rest the night.

After a few seconds of silence, the two remain as Natsu proceeded to pick up all the plates and dishes and washed them to finish his chore for today.

Saber helped out as well and went along with him in silence.

It took only a few minutes until she broke their silent atmosphere.

"How's your body?"

Natsu glanced at her with a dumbfounded expression before recomposing.

"U-Uh, it's fine. I just got a scratch on my hand but it's not that bad or anything." He reassured. Saber released a relieved sigh.

"I'm glad."

"Anyways about what Tohsaka said earlier-"

"I understand. We should start by preparing our own strategy if we want to survive longer in this war. We can't have ourselves relying to Rin that much." Natsu nodded at her suggestion as they both finished their chores and went back to the table to discuss their matters.

"So to start, I think we should discuss about our own capabilities. It's no question that you can handle yourself in the battlefield alone since you possess great magic energy as huge as that of a Servant."

"How does that help?"

"I think I might've forgotten to mention but do you know anything about Noble Phantasms?" Saber asked.

"No, I haven't heard anything like it before. Is it some kind of a weapon?"

"Close. Noble Phantasms are called as trump cards for us Servants. It's the last resort that we can use if the situation calls for it. They can vary into different categories such as anti-personnel, anti-army or anti-castle. These categories are specialized on how powerful a Noble Phantasm is."

"I see."

"However, using a Noble Phantasm will reveal your Servant's identity to the enemy."

"I don't get it." Natsu tilts his head in confusion.

"You see, Natsu. Noble Phantasms represent the legendary weapon of the heroic spirit. It connects to the recognition of that spirit of his great achievements during his lifetime."

"So in other words-"

"Yes, my identity will be exposed just by knowing the weapon seen upon using it. The other Masters will take my identity as an advantage to use my weakness to win."

"I see. Then we should be careful in using your trump card and use it when we really need it."

Saber nodded silently which now got the pinkette pondering more thoughts.

"Judging from your magic power, I can at least release my Noble Phantasm five times though I find it strange." It was Saber's turn to ponder.

"What is?" Natsu asked curiously but Saber immediately regained her composure to relieve his worry.

"It's nothing to worry about. In any case, what are you going to do now? Rin said so before that you would help her find the Master behind the boundary field. Are you going to fight?"

"If that happens, I'll have no choice but I will not kill the Master. If Tohsaka has her way of wanting to finish off the Master, I'll just have to be the one who finds him first before her." Natsu's gaze suddenly went serious.

Saber looked at him for a moment before sighing.

"If that's what Master wants then I'll have no problems with it." She made a faint smile.

"Right. If there's nothing more to discuss, we should sleep. We need to search that Master in that school."

"Understood."

The two finished their discussion and simply went back to their room to rest with Saber sleeping beside the pinkette. Of course, Saber insisted on her stay beside him which ultimately led to his defeat and finally let the knight to sleep in the same room as him though he would scoot away from his futon for her as always.

* * *

 ** _The next day…_**

The morning started out fine except for Saber and Rin since the former had been glaring at the latter with caution. The female knight still can't let her guard down after hearing from the pinkette about their fight yesterday however, Rin casually ignored her glare as if she's not involved in such a thing.

Taiga arrived as usual though became utterly surprised to see Rin staying in his house so he had to explain some things to pass as an excuse to let her stay at the moment. Fortunately, she seemed tolerant enough to let her stay than Saber.

Sakura never arrived or even visited his house which kinda makes it unusual since she always comes around to help him in the morning to cook breakfast.

Only one thing came into his mind at the reason behind her absence.

Shinji.

He did quite rattled him yesterday so there's a chance that he might get pissed and prevent her from visiting him again. If that's the case, he'll just have to visit their house and give him a piece of his mind.

The day started with the three of them starting their way to school since Taiga went ahead of them for a teacher's meeting.

"I'm surprised that you tagged Saber along. I thought you will force to stay at the house to standby again." Rin said with a nonchalant expression.

"Of course not. Plus, I think Saber would help us a lot if a Servant attacks us again."

"Don't worry, Natsu. I will haste by your side if something happened." Saber reassured.

"Okay but remember, there's a boundary field around the school. If the Servant noticed Saber, we might alert their Master in the process." Rin warned.

"Then, I'll wait at the school grounds. As soon as I see a boundary field activating, I'll rush in as soon as possible."

"That would be a good idea. On the other hand, Natsu and I will have to keep looking for the source to slow down its activation."

Both of them nodded at Rin's proposal and simply went along their way.

It didn't take long for them to reach the school as a couple of students looked towards the group in utter amazement and shock though Natsu doesn't seem to notice.

The reason? Well, it's not an everyday chance to see yourself walking side by side with the school number one idol and some beautiful foreign. Of course, anyone would stare in blank amazement of such thing.

Silence filled the air as the three passed down the road until Rin spoke.

"You seemed so calm."

"Well, of course. This is a serious mission. We have to focus on the Master at hand." Natsu reasoned. He seems to be missing the point.

"I agree with Natsu." Saber answered without hesitation. She also missing the point.

Rin could only facepalm herself.

"No wonder why you two are so alike." She sighed.

As soon as they reach the school gates, they stopped for a moment and looked back at Saber. Natsu handed something to her with his hand.

"What's this, Natsu?" She asked.

"It's money. It's going to be a long day and I can't treat you any lunch so help yourself with this. There's a food store beside the school so you can eat your lunch there." Saber was dumbfounded at first but accepted the money and smiled in return.

"Thank you, Master. I'll spend this wisely."

"Then we'll be going."

"Be careful out there, Natsu." Saber advised.

The two waved their hands to each other with Natsu entering the school together with Tohsaka. Saber remained at the gates unmoving accepting the money at hand before looking towards the scenery behind her with a serious look.

 _'I wonder if the other Servants noticed that presence. I can only hope that something like that will not happen in the future.'_

* * *

School started and went without much of a problem. Lunch time eventually came as if time passes so quickly without noticing it. Natsu noticed that Shinji is not present seeing his empty seat in the corner. He also heard that Sakura was not present either.

Something must've happened and he could not help but worry. However, the priority of a boundary activating any time comes first since it would endanger everyone's lives.

He rested on his table to sleep for the whole break until he noticed a couple of his classmates peering through the doors and windows of their room as if they were looking at something.

He quirked his brow in curiosity and went towards the door to see what they're looking at.

"What are you guys looking at?" He asked one of his classmates. They simply pointed their fingers over to a person standing by at the hallway.

It only took the pinkette to notice the person at the hallway to be Tohsaka. She seemed to be waiting for someone or something and it seems like she's running out of patience.

"Tohsaka?"

"Right. It seems like she waiting for someone but the one she's waiting for is not here yet. Don't you find it strange?"

"What?"

"Tohsaka Rin, our school number one idol is waiting for someone. This isn't just some ordinary scene you see every day."

"Is she that really popular?" Natsu asked.

"Of course! And seeing her like this is a great shock. I wonder who she's waiting for."

On the other hand, Rin tapped her fingers on her crossed arms, seemingly running out of patience. Her eyes wandered through the hallway and finally met with the confused pinkette. Her face resulted a grumpy look before pointing at the pinkette much to the shock of everyone else in the corridor, including his classmates.

"Me?"

Rin didn't reply but simply walked ahead the corridor, prompting the pinkette to follow as a result. The room was silent and the stares are unbearable for him at least since this is the first time everyone looked at him in pure shock.

Silence filled the hallway as they passed and headed for the stairs leading the rooftop until Natsu spoke.

"Where are we going, Tohsaka?"

"Just follow me." She insisted. Natsu only sighed and went along with her, enduring the stares of his schoolmates until they finally made it to the rooftop.

Natsu stood there confusingly as Tohsaka sat down behind the water tank which also serves as a place to hide themselves from any students from below. What's even more confusing is that she was urging him to sit beside her.

Sure he does not mind but he wanted to know.

"So what did you bring me here for, Tohsaka?"

"Just sit here then we'll talk!" She cut him off without much of a reply with a reddened face. Natsu quietly complied and sat down beside her. He didn't bring any lunch with him since he doesn't feel like eating but it seems like Tohsaka has yet to eat her own.

"You didn't bring your lunch?"

"I ate it early. Plus, I don't feel like eating right now. Just tired." He yawned nonchalantly.

"Hoh…" Her tone sounds like she was amused at his attitude but decided to keep it to herself and simply brought out her own lunch.

"So have you found anything yet? I mean, about the boundary field." It was then Natsu decided to ask.

"H–Huh?! Y-Yeah, I've located some runes planted somewhere around school so I might dismantling to slow down the process."

"I see."

"That boundary field will drain the life force of all the students here once it's activated. We need to stop the Master behind all this before that happens." Rin bit her lip.

"Have you located the Master yet?"

"I told you already. It's hard to detect them when they're not using any magical energy. Only the magi can be detected at a moment's notice if they used any form of magic within the schoolgrounds. Sadly, there hasn't been any detection of magic essence in the area so it's hard." She huffed.

"So all we can do is to wait, huh?" Natsu trailed off, unknowingly overcame by sleep.

"That's right. So we'll need to keep a sharp eye-Huuuuuh?!" The moment she turned around, Natsu was already sleeping while sitting up straight.

"Kugh–" Tohsaka found it hard to shake him. Surely, it's rude to sleep while someone is talking.

 _'Why do you have to sleep now at this time?'_ She thought out with a disappointed face before looking towards his peaceful face.

Come to think of it, this is the first time she saw him resting. The problem of the Grail War and Servants seemingly disappeared just by looking at his peaceful expression.

"Hmph… Idiot. Sleeping in the middle of the battle. You really surprise me a lot these days, Emiya-kun." She sighed.

Her words are answered in blank air. She observed him in wonder until she slowly found herself scooting near to him.

..

..

A sharp slap to her face resulted herself being snapped back to reality with blushing face.

 _'W-What am I thinking at a time like this?!'_ She cursed herself for doing such thing. It's not like she wanted to accompany him or anything.

More importantly, what is she doing here watching him sleep? A sound of the bell rang from the distance, prompting the start of the fifth period. She took it as a cue for her to search out for more runes around school and stood up to head over to the door before taking a glance back to the sleeping pinkette.

Heat rose from her cheeks before deciding to leave her remaining lunch beside him with a note before heading downstairs.

Today seemed to be weird for her. She can't control herself whenever she tried thinking back about what happened back at the rooftop.

She shook her thoughts and focused on the topic at hand.

* * *

Natsu woke up from sleep, unaware that he skipped two periods. He stood up and found Tohsaka nowhere in sight. It seems like she went off ahead of him just so she won't bother him in his sleep.

Before he could even stand up, he noticed a wrapped lunchbox beside him with a note in it. He took the note and read its contents.

 _"Went ahead to dispel the runes since you're asleep. I left my lunch just so if you want to eat. Be sure to return it or I'll kill you."_

The last part made him chuckle a bit.

Well, at least he knew that she was being thoughtful. That alone made him change his view on her quite a bit.

With a smile, he dug in and finished it with just a few minutes before heading downstairs.

But what he found down at the stairs was someone he did not expect. His body leaned over to the wall as if expecting him at a moment's notice.

"Yo, Natsu." A cold voice emanated on the quiet hall since most of the students are inside their rooms.

"Shinji. What are you doing here? I thought you're absent."

"Oh that. I think it's not that bad if a skip a class or two. Plus, I came here for some business with you." He revealed.

"Business with me?"

"Yeah. Let's talk somewhere. We don't want anyone hearing our conversation now, do we?" Natsu noticed the cold gaze but retained his composure.

Shinji went further downstairs in which he followed silently. They made their way out of the school building and eventually made it to the archery dojo.

Both of them were silent until Shinji turned around to speak.

"Now then, let's cut down to the chase, Natsu." He grinned with pride.

"What are getting at, Shinji?" Natsu asked seriously.

"Don't play coy with me, Natsu. I know you heard enough about the Holy Grail War. The existence of Servants and all, right?"

"You… Where did you hear that?" He suddenly raised his guard up.

"Hoh? Isn't it natural for a Master to know enough about it?" He replied.

"Then, you're-"

"That's right. I'm a Master just like you."

The revelation hardly surprised him as he stood there unfazed.

"If that's the case, I just have a question for you, Shinji." Natsu spoke.

"What?"

"Are you the one who set up that boundary field around the school?"

"Of course, but don't get the wrong idea here, Natsu. I did it for my own protection. I don't know much about this Grail war myself so I had to take precautions."

"Then you shouldn't involve everyone here if that's your reason."

"I had no choice, Natsu. I was merely protecting myself, you know. Tohsaka is one hard enemy to deal with since she's been trying to turn down my field." Shinji replied.

"Well of course she did. That boundary field is dangerous."

"Look, you don't understand the situation here, Natsu. The reason I came to see you is because I needed allies."

"What?"

"I'm alone and I don't know anything about the other Masters so it's both better for us to cooperate, right? The two of us together, we might win the Holy Grail for ourselves." He offered as he tried to reach out a handshake towards him.

"So what do you say, Natsu?"

"I refuse." He adamantly spoke, shocking the blue-haired boy in front of him.

"W-What?" Shinji stuttered.

"I told you already, I won't cooperate with you. Plus, I allied myself with Tohsaka." For some reason, Shinji felt utterly shocked at his revelation.

"Y-You and Tohsaka are cooperating?!"

"That's right. If you don't want to become enemies with us, I suggest you to turn down that field right now, Shinji." His gaze turned serious as Shinji noticed the growing enmity present in his eyes. Instinctively, he stepped back at bit away from him but Natsu approached him further.

However, he managed to make a brief defiance towards the pinkette as he looked at him with the same eyes as him.

"Heh-Hahahaha! I see now. Well, if that's the case, then I guess there's no other choice." He grinned wickedly.

And in that moment, Natsu alerted himself as he leaped away before a chained nail is struck down to his previous position.

He skidded away from Shinji but not long before he looked at him in confusion as Rider appeared in front of him, protecting Shinji.

"You…" Natsu glared.

"Rider, activate the boundary field now!" Shinji called out in a frantic voice.

The emotionless blindfolded Servant said nothing but simply carried Shinji away to the building but long before the area surrounding the school became red. Huge roots sprouted from the corners, meeting at the center of the field.

The air around it changed into something dreadful as Natsu could smell the essence of death and despair surrounding the school itself.

"Tsk. What the hell is this?" Natsu felt a wave of nausea coming up just by smelling the air around him.

"Natsu!" A familiar voice resounded from behind as he saw Saber coming towards him.

"Saber."

"I noticed a sudden change of the field. It seems like it was activated at an early time. Did the Master find out about us?"

"No, he was preparing it right from the start and I knew who it is." He gritted his teeth in frustration.

"Natsu…"

"Let's go, Saber! We need to find Tohsaka and find Shinji!" Natsu sprinted off with Saber behind him.

* * *

The two tried to follow where Rider had disappeared into and managed to find themselves along the first floor with several bodies of the students lying unconsciously due to the field itself. It drains their life force and stamina which as if the field was trying the suck the air out of the area.

"Shinji!" Natsu shouted as he saw him carried by Rider towards the other end of the hallway.

Rider continued her way towards the stairs in such speeds. Saber and Natsu followed in pursuit as they tracked them upstairs.

Moments later, the chase went through the third floor with Shinji and his Servant still running away until several beams were shot in front of them, causing the blindfolded Servant to stop and protect her Master in the process.

"That's enough, Shinji! This is as far as you go!" Another voice resounded from the other end as Tohsaka came blocking their escape. It didn't take long for Saber and Natsu to occupy the back, pinning the two in between.

"T-Tohsaka!"

"I can't let you go any further. Not until you surrender and put down this field around us." Rin threatened. On the other hand, Saber wields her invisible sword in her arms with her magical armor at the ready for the fight.

"Tch. I should've known that you two were working together." Shinji clicked his tongue in annoyance.

"You never even intended to let me live. Well, I guess I'll have to thank Emiya-kun for saving me back then."

"Damn you, Tohsaka!"

"This is your last warning, Shinji. Turn down the field and revoke your Command Spells or there's gonna be trouble." Rin warned the frantic boy with a hostile look as she pointed her finger towards him.

"Heh- Like I'm gonna lose to the likes of you. Rider!"

"Understood." Without giving anyone the time to react, Rider grabbed Shinji once more and jumped out to the window, much to everyone's surprise. Glass shattered as the Servant jumped off before landing softly to the ground.

"Wha-"

"Kill them, Rider. Use your Noble Phantasm now!" Shinji shouted. Rider never replied but she simply went on all fours, assuming a stance.

The three widened their eyes in disbelief after sensing a change of the atmosphere around Rider.

"I-It can't be- Is he trying to use his Servant's Noble Phantasm?!" Rin stuttered.

"Natsu, this is bad. Her Noble Phantasm is an anti-army category. It seems like he was trying to lure us in one place to use their trump card against us." Saber warned.

"If he's using it, he doesn't intend to leave the school unharmed. Damn it, I'm so careless!" Rin cursed herself, unable to find a way to save both themselves and the school.

"I think this is also a good time to use your Noble Phantasm, Saber." Rin turned towards the knight in anticipation.

"I can't use my Noble Phantasm at this place. There's a chance I might also destroy the whole building around us." Saber replied with concern.

Down at the ground below, Shinji grinned wickedly as he found them into his trap. He looked at Rider in anticipation to initiate her Noble Phantasm against them.

"Go, Rider! Blow them away!" He shouted.

Without wasting any time, Rider simply lifted her dagger and slit her throat in the process. Blood gushed out from her neck before forming into some sort of a magical circle. Her neck healed back instantly to stop the excess blood before focusing on the magical circle in front of her.

Soon afterwards, the circle glowed in bright red, seemingly activating the spell itself as the three braced for impact.

"Hahahaha! Die along with your pitiful Servant!"

But before Rider could even unleash her Noble Phantasm, the book held on Shinji's hand suddenly burned away from existence.

For some unknown reason, Rider was forced to cancel her own spell towards them, seeing the book was burned away from his grip. She slowly vanished away, abruptly ending the fight as Shinji looked at his hand in disbelief.

The field also disappeared, turning back the world's original colors as Rider's presence and power disappeared in an instant. Natsu, Saber and Rin were completely surprised at the turn of events, seeing the Servant disappearing beside Shinji.

"H-Heh?! W-What in the world just happened?" The Matou Master stuttered at the sudden disappearance of his Servant together with his Command Spell just before he could finish the three.

It took only him a few moments to realize before his expression turned into madness.

"Damn that girl!" He gazed angrily towards horizon.

His angered nature turned into fear as he saw Natsu and Rin alongside with Saber coming towards him.

"Hiiii–Hiii!" He shrieked out in horror as soon as Rin got a hold of him and pinned him down to the ground.

"You good-for-nothing idiot!" Rin shouted in anger as she proceeded with a punch towards Shinji's face as soon as she got him cornered.

"Using a Noble Phantasm against a group of people. Have you gone mad, you sick person!" She spat out in anger at his actions until she was stopped by Natsu.

"That's enough, Tohsaka. More importantly, we need information from him." He reasoned with a calm expression. Sure enough, Rin's anger seemed to have simmered down a bit after being talked by him and finally let Shinji off.

"Hmph- Make sure we get all the information we need from him." She stood back in annoyance as he lets the pinkette do the talking. He looked at him who seemed to be in fear after losing his Servant.

"You should've expected what's going to happen once you raised your hand against us. You lost your Servant and lost your rights as a Master. Now, tell us all what you know." He ordered without so much of a sympathy despite him being his classmate.

Shinji only cowered in fear at his words as he tried to get away from them as possible.

"S-Stay away! I know nothing– I swear!"

"Liar! I've known that the Matou bloodline has ceased by now. They don't have the aptitude to carry Magic Circuits in their bodies and the continuous decline of their generation's ability to use magic had rendered them dead. As someone from the Matou bloodline, it's quite unlikely for you to become a Master." Rin butted in.

However, that statement simply surprised the pinkette.

"Wait, Shinji is from a family of magi?"

"Yes, but their bloodline declined many centuries ago due to their settlement here in Japan. They did not adapt well to the land and thus, lost their ability to inherit Magic Circuits in each generation. And since Shinji is an apparent heir of the Matou, he does not have any Magic Circuits in him to sustain his Servant's power. In order give his Servant enough power, he set up a boundary field to feed off from the life force of the students here. Isn't that right, Shinji?" She looked at him with expectant eyes.

Shinji could only look away in fear, having nothing to say at her assumptions.

"I find it strange though. For someone as inferior as you to become a Master is truly surprising. No wonder why I can't detect you."

"Y-You think I'm inferior?!" Somehow, Shinji was able to speak. The other two looked at him in surprise.

"Shinji."

"I see now. You think highly of yourselves that much? Well, let's see if you can keep that face of yours once I got back." He declared.

"Is that so? You already lost your Servant. If you want to live, it's best for you to stay out until this all ends. Your fight ends here, Shinji." Rin intimidated his resolve.

Shinji sprinted away in fear as he made his way to the school gate but not long before he glanced back towards them with hateful look.

"This isn't over. You hear me? This isn't over!" He shouted off from the distance before disappearing from sight.

Rin sighed as soon as the fight was over and simply turned towards the two with a relieved expression.

"I can never understand that guy. He's way too mad for anyone to look after."

"Well, I'm glad that we didn't have to kill anyone." Natsu replied with relief.

"Yeah but there are casualties. I'm going to contact Kirei and see if he can help cover this up and take the students to the hospital for treatment. It seems like the boundary field took its toll on most of the students." Rin suggested.

"I'll go help the others. Will you help me, Saber?"

"Of course."

But before the two could even return back to the school, Natsu noticed the troubled expression on Rin's face. She seemed to be thinking about something.

"Is something wrong, Tohsaka?"

Somehow, his words snapped her back from her thoughts and looked at him in surprise.

"O-Oh, it's nothing. I'm just thinking about something. It's nothing serious really. Don't worry about it." She reassured.

"Okay, Saber and I will be heading out first." Rin nodded in response as the two went back to the school and began to help the other unconscious students, leaving Rin alone.

 _'For Shinji to become a Master is impossible. There has to be some kind of process in which he'd taken to become a Master.'_

She thought deeply to base her assumptions until she gritted her teeth in realization.

 _'It's too early for such a thing. I hope it doesn't turn out to be like that.'_ She shook her head and went back to the situation at hand. There's too many mysteries surrounding Shinji's rights to become a Master. She needed to make sure of herself if her guess was entirely true or not.

With a renewed gaze, she went off and helped the two in tending to the other students.

* * *

 ** _Meanwhile… In an unknown place…_**

The place was completely devoid of sunlight as no light can shine through the dark room itself. The stench of death and dead worms are the things that could only be describe in the place.

No- It can't be called into something like that.

It was more like a breeding ground for worms for unknown purposes. Tiny wriggling creatures moved around in complete darkness eating anything that is thrown in its place. Multiple burial sites are seen at the far left of the room just beside the stairs leading down to the breeding ground.

It was deemed empty since only remnants of the previous corpses are seen there, mainly bones.

A figure is seen standing in the midst of the ground. She seemed to be suffering as a hot sensation was felt all over body after being forced here.

The worms created a fair distance away from the figure as if they were scared of it. Heavy pants are heard within the dark room as the figure struggles to contain herself. Sweats flowed out from her body due to tiredness and fatigue.

A rather pained voice is voiced out from her lips as she muttered something.

"Sen…pai."

Behind the figure was an old man standing at the stair, observing her quietly as the worms began to surround her once more.

A rather crooked voice was heard after hearing the girl speak.

"Hmm?"

His voice sounded like an inquiry as he turned back towards the stairs and went ahead with a deep thought.

"Not yet. The time is not yet at hand. I'll need to observe a bit more." As soon as those words were spoken, the old man vanished away in the darkness.

* * *

 **A/N: Sup guys. It's been a long while since I updated. Sorry for the long wait. I just had to play VN before continuing this story once more to get a better understanding of it, especially the HF route.**

 **I'll also add an OC character here, requested by a reader to help twist the story a bit but who knows. I'd also like to hear your opinions if you want an OC character in the story or not.**

 **Once again, I apologize for the long hiatus. I'll get back on my older stories as soon I finished some loose ends irl.**

 **\- wiErD SpeCtrumz blacking out… … …**


	8. Descent of Terror

**A/N: Hello, everyone. wiErD here. Here's the next chapter of the story. Hope ya like it.**

 **Have Fun and Happy Reading.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own FT and FSN. Credit goes to their respective owners.**

* * *

 **\- Descent of Terror –**

After the whole incident regarding Shinji and his Servant, Natsu and Saber went home early due to classes being suspended. The barrier set around the school took a toll on most of the students who were under its effects and thus, was carried to hospitals in order to recover.

Taiga also suffered the same state as the others but the pinkette was glad to see her quite fine since she managed to wake up though only for a minute before losing consciousness. He thought for a second she was going to die but he was glad that it wasn't the case.

The school was momentarily shut down due to the broken window on the third floor where Rider jumped into along with Shinji during their fight. As a result, the whole school will be putting a week suspension to give time for the repairs and recovery of some of the students.

Natsu couldn't choose whether he was quite relieved about not having school or not since there still more problems at hand, regarding the other Masters.

On the other hand, Rin still had some things to worry about regarding the incident around the school so she will have to come home by night though she left a message for him in tonight's duty.

It seems like there is also a Master located within Ryudou Temple. He wasn't given enough details about it but she suggests that he should take a short scouting mission on the mountain itself to identify their enemy although, she wanted to prefer about taking down the enemy if he's up to it.

..

..

Like hell, he'll do that.

Opening the sliding door towards the living room, Natsu made his way through the kitchen with Saber who is now in her normal clothes, seeing that she doesn't wear her magical armor all the time. They returned back safely without any encounters with any of the Masters which somehow gives them a sign of relief due to having their battle against Rider.

The sun is still setting as the skies were dyed in scarlet hue, hovering tall shadows from the trees over in the distance along with the other tall structures around the city.

"There's still more time before sundown so I'll be only preparing tea for the moment, is that okay?" He asked over to the living room towards Saber who sat properly on the table.

"Of course, don't worry about my energy. My powers rely on your own powers as well." Saber reassured.

Natsu nodded as he went to make some hot tea for the two of them to spend their time before the sunset. It took only a few minutes as the pinkette finishes his brewing and set the plate down with two cups of tea. He hands one to her and places the plate back to the kitchen sink and sat across the table, facing her.

They silently sipped their tea as they fell awkwardly silent since there was nothing for them to talk at the moment. If Rin was here, the conversation would've started by now.

Hoping to break the atmosphere around them, Natsu began his conversation.

"Although, it's too late for me to ask but why do you pursue the Holy Grail? I know it grants its wishes and such and that Servants are heroes of the past but I never knew the reason why you need it." He asked a rather interesting question since he became curious about it.

At first, Saber was surprised but tried to recompose herself as her shoulders drooped a little before showing a solemn expression towards him. She slightly choked on her words, hesitant to say something about her own problems to him.

There was a moment of silence until she finally spoke.

"I wanted a wish that can undo my actions from the past."

"Huh? Why?"

"Natsu..." She suddenly called out his name with a solemn expression.

"My actions brought nothing but destruction to my people and my country. I failed to serve as their king. I wish to save my country from ruin. That's all I wanted to wish for the Grail."

Saber would want him to understand but however, Natsu felt like he heard some parts for the first time in her history, specifically, her position as a king and a leader of one country.

I mean, you don't exactly picture a girl like her at that age to lead a country, let alone become their king so it's kinda mind boggling.

"W-Wait?! You're a king?!" He stuttered in response which somewhat surprised her.

"Yes... Is there a problem, Natsu?" She asked as if she noticed something wrong on his question.

"W-Well... It's just strange to see someone like you to be a king long ago. I mean, you're an elegant and beautiful girl so I didn't expect that." He replied sheepishly. Of course, Saber would think of it as an insult to her name but instead, she slightly blushed at the compliment.

"W-What are you saying, Natsu? Are you making fun of me?" She stood up in embarrassment. Her face flushed red and her very behavior became that of a lady instead of her usual stoic personality.

Who would've thought that she can be like this? History seemed really strange back then though Natsu had little knowledge about them so he couldn't care less.

Leaving that thought aside, there's a more serious issue for him right now.

Raising his hands in reassurance, Natsu tried to speak.

"I'm not making fun of you, Saber. I just said what I have in my mind when I see you. Surely, Rin would say the same thing if she happens to be your Master, right?" Saber stopped for a moment as she listened to his words which somehow made her blush even more.

"H-Hmph... You're too carefree, Natsu." She huffed in irritation before glancing away to hide her embarrassment from him.

An awkward silence reigned before them as Natsu recomposed himself before looking at the blonde-haired knight with a reassuring smile.

"Anyways, we should-" He was interrupted as soon as they both heard a knock on the door, abruptly ending their conversation as Natsu stood up to get the door open for the visitor.

As he opens that door, he recognized Sakura standing nervously in front of him.

"Sakura?" He didn't expect her to come out here at this time of day since there has been an incident at school right now. Or did she just come here to do her usual routine in the house?

"G-Good afternoon, Natsu-senpai." Came the shy response as the purple-haired girl bowed nervously in front of him.

"Oh, good afternoon too, Sakura. I didn't notice you were coming here since you were absent earlier."

The mentioned girl gave a small pause for a moment before speaking.

"Well, there are just some things that I needed to do so I wasn't able to attend on time. Oh, I heard there was an accident on school earlier." She reminded as Natsu answered with a reassuring smile.

"It was just gas leak or some sort. Everyone's been taken to the hospitals in order to recover. We're granted a one-week suspension after that so I'll be staying here in the meantime until school comes back." He answered.

"Really?" She widens her eyes in surprise.

"Yeah... Are you cooking here by any chance?"

"Y-Yes! I always come here to help you out, Senpai! Didn't you remember that?" She puffed her cheeks in a cute way as Natsu drew a smile in return.

"Of course, but you don't have to force yourself if that's okay. I don't know what would happen if you suddenly faint all of a sudden." Despite his worries, Sakura simply returned with a gentle smile in reassurance to the boy in front of her.

"I'll keep that in mind, Senpai. Oh and, thank for looking out for me. I'm really happy."

Natsu simply placed his hand over to her head as he smiled warmly towards her.

"I just don't want you to get hurt, you know. You and Fuji-nee are my only families left now. I should be looking out for you if that's the case."

Natsu could only relieve himself from his worries as soon as Sakura drew a gentle smile after that. It's always been like that since the time when he met her. Back when they were still kids, he saw her as an opposite person from what she is right now.

Sakura never made any friends and was completely lonely so he just couldn't keep it that way. It was also at that time he met Shinji. Like her past self, Shinji was also a bright boy unlike from what he has become now. He didn't know behind his change but it took him just a month to realize their strained relationship as siblings.

Shinji was rather harsh to her every time he speaks to her. There was no hint of affection as siblings between them and Sakura seemed to pay no heed to that.

Even so, Natsu tried to befriend with her. At first, it's a bit awkward but as time passes, they eventually formed a close relationship. So close that even rumors about them going out are common since they both walked together to school.

It's not like he had a problem with it though. Rather, he was fine with it as long as she could be happy. Her personality changed completely after spending time with him and had been doing the usual routine of helping him out every morning breakfasts or evening meals.

..

..

Now that you think about it, it's quite a long time since they first met. Natsu could never see her as the same girl he used to play with back then but instead a woman with a gentle heart that could make any guy fall if they get to know her better.

It took him just now to realize how much they've changed.

"Anyways, come in... Saber and I were just about to prepare for dinner so..."

"Saber-san? Is she still here?" Unexpectedly, Sakura sounded a bit troubled after hearing about her.

"What are you talking about? Of course, she would be here for awhile. You know how my old man does in his travels." He replied despite being confused at her sudden change of her mood.

"H-How long is she going to be here?" She asked timidly which only got the pink-haired boy thinking.

"Well... It might take two weeks or so. Other than that, I think it should be fine with her around once in awhile." He reassured.

"I see..." She mumbled depressingly.

"Is something wrong, Sakura?"

"N-Not at all! Anyway, we should start with the dinner first. It's getting dark." She spoke as Natsu looked at the sky which started to darken, prompting him to nod in response as they both went inside to cook their dinner.

..

..

..

A few hours passed and the sun finally set down. Darkness took over the world as the city of Fuyuki shone many flickering lights from the distant buildings. Streetlights lit up the road and fewer cars are seen on the road.

Natsu and Sakura began their cooking while Saber waited patiently at the dojo, meditating in silence and probably thinking about the progress of the Holy Grail War.

"Can you pass me the plate?" Natsu spoke.

"Here." Sakura handed the small plate to him as he started to pour some ingredients to cook.

The two had been doing separate chores and tasks to make dinner and they seemed to enjoy it at least since Natsu could see her smiling to her heart's content. She seemed happier than what she was a few days back.

Maybe something good happened to her.

"Oh, Sakura! That's for the soup." He pointed out.

"O-Oh, right. Sorry, senpai! I didn't notice." She apologized sincerely before moving on to the next task.

"Are sure you're alright? You look rather tired." Natsu stopped for a moment to observe her condition. Just after a few minutes, she started to become slightly pale in comparison.

"I-It's alright... I'm just–"

Then all of a sudden, her vision went blurry and her head suddenly felt a series of pain that cause her to faint all of a sudden. Her feet instantly lost its strength and was about to hit the floor if not for him catching her back at the last minute.

"Sakura!" He shouted in worry as he placed his hand over to her head and noticed her temperature unusually high.

"N-Natsu... senpai," Sakura mumbled his name but the pain on her head makes it hard for her to concentrate or even look at him straight in the eyes. She breathed heavily as Natsu could feel her body temperature getting higher all of a sudden.

"You got a cold, Sakura." He spoke.

"I-I'm fine... I can still make our dinner." She tried to speak but Natsu simply shook his head sideways.

"No, you're sick and you're going to need a bit of rest. I told you already... You don't have to overwork yourself. I'd be worried sick if something worse happened to you, Sakura." He replied with a strained voice.

It was then, she felt another wave of pain on her head as she gasps for air, taking heavy breaths. This is more than just a fever.

Without wasting any second, he proceeded in carrying her bridal-style away from the kitchen. Her body was soft and the sweat sticks to her uniform, lightly drenching it due her unusual high temperature.

She doesn't seem to be conscious but she's still moaning in pain as he carried her all the way to a spare room.

He banged the door wide open before nudging the switch as the dark room immediately got lit and revealed a spare bed beside the door along with some furniture that has been unused for a long time.

Natsu settled the sick girl gently down to the bed and touched her forehead once more and felt its heat.

"Sakura! Hey, are you alright, Sakura...!?" Natsu called out to her.

"Natsu... senpai..." Sakura slowly opens her eyes and stares at me with a weak voice.

"Just don't speak... I'll get some medicine for you." He turned over to the drawer laid beside him and rummaged through the first aid box to see if there's any medicine to fight off the cold.

Eventually, he got a small bottle but he's going to take care of that unusual body heat first.

"I'll be right back. Just don't move, Sakura. You need to rest." He replied before running back towards the living room to get some clothing to cool down her fever.

At the same time, Saber arrived back at the main house and looked confusingly at the panicking boy.

"What's wrong, Natsu?"

"Sakura's sick. Can you find me some medicine for her, I'll have to cool her head down first." He requested to which the blonde girl nodded in silence and went to search for some medicines as Natsu rushed back to the room.

As soon as he got back, he laid down the bowl of water beside him and soaked a white cloth on his hand before coiling it tightly to put off the excess water and slowly placed on top of her forehead.

Sakura was still trying to control her breaths. Her cheeks were red hot and the hairs sticking to her forehead drop down.

"I-I'm sorry, Senpai..." She spoke despite being sick.

"There's no need for that... Here let me take your temperature." Natsu dismissed her apology and focused on her fever as he placed a medical thermometer on her to measure her body temperature.

A few minutes, she managed to regain a normal breathing and Natsu took out the thermometer and looked at the result. At the same time, Saber came in with the medicine he requested. The two helped together in getting her to take medicine and ease her cold for now.

..

..

"Let's see. Your temperature is a bit over 37 degrees. It's lower than I thought." He sighed in relief before calming down in the process and look back at Sakura.

"I'm sorry... I guess I got dizzy since I was so nervous." She hides her face with the futon.

"You can't help catching a cold, right? You should be better by tomorrow if you drink some medicine and get a good night's sleep..." He reassured.

"... I'll leave some water here on the chair, so don't go out of the room, okay?"

He placed another blanket over her, just in case.

"Natsu, what about dinner?" Saber called out to him, prompting him to rethink his task back at the kitchen.

"Ah, right. I'll be doing the dinner on my own. You'll have to rest and take it easy for now." He looked back at the sick girl who weakly nodded with a faint smile. He left the lights on before heading back to the kitchen along with Saber who decided to help out as well.

"Master, I'd like to ask you about our patrol for the night."

"Alright, we're giving it a go. But I'll have to finish some things before we could head out at night. I'll try to call back at her house and tell them of her condition. At least, that could give her family some permission to let her stay in the meantime." He replied with a positive look.

"From what I remember, Sakura is related to Rider's Master..." Saber recalled which also made him think for a moment.

That's right. He forgot to ask Sakura about Shinji since they just encountered him earlier at the school. He doesn't know if she knows about him being a Master but it would seem like a bad idea if he involves her in this Grail war.

Right now, the only thing he's going to do is to keep it a secret from her until the war is over.

"I doubt Sakura knows anything about us yet. I think it's better to keep it that way but if Shinji is part of the selected Masters. I think there's a chance that he might involve her in this war soon." Natsu narrowed his eyes in suspicion.

"Understood... I'll try to keep a close eye on her if anything happens." Saber swore.

"Thanks... Anyways, we should make ourselves some dinner. I'm getting hungry."

* * *

After a few hours, Natsu and Saber eventually settled their food down on the table. The pink-haired boy brought some food over to Sakura's room since she was in no condition to eat on her own so he'll have to help out.

"I'm coming in!" Natsu called out from the door and gently pushed it open and saw Sakura covering herself with a blanket, leaving only her face visible from the sheets.

"I brought food."

"T-Thank you, senpai. I'm sorry for being like this. I acted such a bother for you." She apologized.

"Honestly, you've been apologizing for quite awhile now. I already told you, there's nothing to feel sorry for. You helped me in more ways than I did for you so at least let me help you once in awhile." Natsu smiled.

There was a hint of happiness coming from her face after he said that. The two fell silent as the atmosphere between them became awkward.

"O-Oh, that's right. Here's your dinner." Natsu brought a small table and placed it over to her as she sat up straight while he also putting the food right in front of her.

"E-Eh, you're going to feed me, senpai?" She asked shyly.

"Of course. Why wouldn't I?" He asked with a dumbfounded look.

"I-It's alright! I-I can eat myself–" She tried to deny his offer but Natsu gently shushed her and replied once again.

"No, I'm your senpai so it's my job to look after my kouhai, especially when she's sick." He made a toothy grin which somewhat blushed her in the process. If she didn't have her cold, Natsu would notice her embarrassment right away.

Hiding her face under the blanket, she mumbled something to him in which he heard in the process.

"That's not fair, senpai... To use your smile like that every time."

"Is that so? I guess it works on you now." He chuckled but Sakura could only bury her embarrassment.

"Come on, the food will get cold, I'll feed you." He scooped some from the soup. Sakura hesitated but she complied afterward as she lowered down the blanket and finally looked at him with a straight face.

"Aaaah~"

"Aaaahm." She closed her mouth and took all of the contents before drawing back away from the spoon to have a taste of the soup.

"How was it?" He said.

"It's delicious!" She beamed, her gentle smile confirmed her words.

"I see... I'm glad." After that, the two continued on their routine as Natsu fed her with her dinner until they were able to finish it on time. The sound of the clock ticking echoes through the room as Natsu gathered all the plates before walking back to the living room until-

"Senpai?" Her voice called him back.

"Yes, what is it?"

"T-Thank you for feeding me." Despite half of her face covered in sheets, Natsu could see that she was satisfied by his care.

"Don't mention it, I'll be back in a bit to make you sleep. You're scared when you're alone, right?"

"O-Only because it's a place I don't know... I haven't been able to sleep here once." She quickly replied back.

"Alright... I'll help you get used to the room a little bit." He grinned as he placed down the empty plates and stayed for a long while to accompany her.

He turned off the lights and gently left the door partially open as a small shred of light shone across the room.

He sat near the bed, leaning his back against it while waiting for her to sleep. He felt a slight movement of air, it must be her pulling up her blanket.

And after a long period of silence...

"Are you awake, Senpai?" A gentle voice lights up the darkness.

Natsu nods in response since the light outside the door helped the girl to see his figure. That one action is probably enough for him.

A moment of silence went past them until she speaks again.

"Thank you for everything you did today." And with that, she falls asleep peacefully.

Natsu heard her faint breaths as he silently walked out of the room and washed all the remaining dishes before heading out to the shed to train some of his powers in the process. There's still time to do something before they could go out on a patrol so he'll have to use this opportunity to further his use of his magic power.

..

..

..

The lights go out and the town is going to sleep as the number of people outside was reduced to none.

Natsu settled over to the shed where he usually does his tinkering of fixing tools in a few days back. It's been a long time since he used his Reinforcement so he ought to try it out once more just in case.

"E-Eh?" He tilts his head on confusion, realizing he can't seem to image the broken utility in front of him.

Something must be wrong. He drew his hand close to him and looked in wonder. It seems like he can't use his Reinforcement anymore.

He tried channeling his magic over to his hand but a burst of small flame erupted from it instead of using his Reinforcement. It looks like his new magic somewhat erased his Reinforcement without him knowing it.

"Strange... How's that even possible?" He mumbled to himself as he looked back at the broken appliance in front of him. It looks like he won't be fixing them anytime soon because of his new power.

It's quite unsure if he's overjoyed or not but rather, he had mixed feelings about it. He spent his entire life practicing the only magic Kiritsugu had provided for him. To see it completely gone with the replacement of the unknown power he just got, it seemed rather wasteful.

He sighed in depression, knowing all the time he'd spent on a magic that is easily replaced.

"Kugh–" All of a sudden, pain wells up inside his head as soon as he tried to remember the familiar scene he had back on his previous dream.

 _'Why do I keep having headaches whenever I tried thinking about it?'_ He thought in confusion as soon as he recovered for a moment to calm down.

After that, a familiar figure loomed over to the entrance as Natsu glanced back and saw Saber in her magical armor once more.

"Natsu... It's already time." She called out.

"Y-Yeah... I'll be there in a moment." Natsu pushed the appliances aside and simply stood up before sliding the door to close it.

"What are you doing in the shed?" She asked curiously.

"It's nothing... Just got some things to think about before heading out." He reassured before changing the topic.

"... From what Tohsaka informed me about the Master at the Ryudou Temple, they seemed to be the reason of why there are many coma incidents happening in town. I don't know if it's true or not but we'll have to find out."

"You are right. I do feel something intentional in the ley line pointing to the Ryudou Temple. I am sure that a Master is on that mountain."

"Ley-what?"

"Let's just say, the temple itself is the heart of the city that functions as the keystone of Fuyuki's leylines. It has the greatest strategic position due to its geography."

"What's wrong, Saber? You seemed pretty down. You have less spirit than earlier even though it was just a short battle."

"Natsu... That mountain is an ominous place for Servants. I would like to avoid careless attacks." She reasoned.

"What do you mean by that?"

"The mountain has a boundary field that repels Servants. If we force out way through, I might lose most of my magical power and energy."

"So it's no good then." Natsu sighed in disappointment.

"Not entirely no... Only the front gate is not bounded by those fields although the problem would be–" She tried to speak but Natsu answered it for her.

"It's a perfect place for an ambush, right?"

Saber silently nodded. Natsu took a moment to think up for a plan to make their move as the night progresses on. It might take awhile before Rin could return back to the house. Plus, she doesn't even know that Sakura is staying with them at the moment. It might be bad if she were to accidentally wake her up like that.

"Hmm... So should we patrol the town and wait for Rin or advance to the mountain by ourselves?" He asked.

"No, there's no need for that. A Master that would set up his base in the temple would not readily reveal his identity. If we are to quickly defeat him, we must face them straight on and power through." She suggested with determination.

"Well, you said you don't want any careless attacks. Now you want to charge in? How is that different from reckless?" He teased which soon got the blonde knight stuttering.

"I-I was just proposing my method of approaching my enemies! There is no honor in fighting if one uses cheap tricks." She defended.

Oh, right. He almost forgot. She was a knight and a noble one at that. It would make sense why she doesn't tolerate underhanded tactics like what Fuji-nee did to her on their spar.

Seeing her embarrassed about her actions, Natsu only chuckled in response before putting a soft pat on her head.

"Don't worry. I like your way of thinking. Just blast through and no questions asked, right?" He smiled.

Saber stopped in a daze before recomposing herself and looked at the pinkette in suspicion.

"Are you making fun of me again, Natsu?"

"No. I like fighting in the same you do, Saber. We're one of the same kind." He replied reassuringly to which made her smile a bit before speaking.

"I see... I'm glad. Then, we should head out."

With a nod, the two sprinted off towards Ryudou Temple. High overhead, clouds passed before the moon, and the darkness deepens. Saber focused her attention towards the enemy territory lie beyond them.

There's still a question about the mysterious force that she felt last night. So far, there hasn't been any encounter with the other Masters like Illyasviel. It would seem like she had no intention to fight them for now.

Whatever happens, she'll have to be ready to protect Natsu at all costs.

* * *

 ** _Meanwhile,_**

A high-pitched sound rings out around the silent gate.

The brilliant moonlight glints off the long sword as it clatters down the stairs. The magnificent craft of that sword is unlike anyone's has ever seen before. The precision made and length it had could cover as half of the flat stone steps that made it dangerous for anyone to confront it in close quarters.

Kneeling a few steps away was a man dressed in a purple coat. His lips are smeared with blood and after awhile drips down further to his chin as his eyes gazed over to the mysterious intruder.

"Guh–!" The man grunts in pain as it stretches out from what it seemed to be its limbs towards him without mercy.

His arms were separated from his body in an instant. The elegant fabric of the man's coat was smeared with his own blood.

"Hmph. I never thought you would be so merciless." The man uttered weakly as his lips went pale, completely devoid of blood in just a matter of seconds after the brutal slash on his arms.

..

..

The mountain gate is quiet.

The Servant that guarded the place lay defeated and bleeding badly in front of a shadow.

The battle has already ended. It all ended in a flash in his brutal defeat.

And just after a few seconds, the shadow approaches. It strokes the Assassin's cheek with a scornful and twisted gesture.

Then all of a sudden, a deformed hand comes out from his stomach. His bones crack, his torn and mutilated body is now drowned by the pool of his own blood. Despite that, his expression was lifeless as if he'd accepted his terrible fate.

"Kugh–!" Assassin suppresses the regurgitating blood but that didn't stop him from smiling from his pale lips.

"... Very well, do as you wish. After all, this is just coming out of me. I cannot bring myself to such an honorable death–"

The cool voice of the man disappears.

What came after was nothing more of an abomination.

"Ki–kikikikiki–" It's first cries sound like those of an insect along with its unnatural appearance.

The deformed creature soon devours the swordsman's body. Its voice cracked with every tear of the flesh before him. As he consumes the false Assassin, his body started to turn that of a human and after a few seconds.

The mutilated body disappears from the stone. No trace of blood was seen on the steps as if it was scraped in its last drop by the monster.

As soon as he was finished, the melts away from the shadows, leaving only a white skull that shows its ominous appearance before also being swallowed in the darkness.

..

..

* * *

 ** _After a few minutes,_**

Natsu and Saber arrived at the stone steps with the latter already armed with her invisible sword.

The sound of insects echoed on the empty front gate as the two looked at its surroundings for any enemy that might be lurking around.

"..."

"..."

They took a momentary pause to listen but there're no such things happening around it. The gate was eerily quiet as if it was recently abandoned.

The steps are long, and the wind if warm enough even though they're near the mountain top.

"I thought they would be setting an ambush here but I don't sense anyone around here. I can't even pick up a scent of anyone near to it. What about you, Saber?" He asked.

"No. There are no other Servants around–" After a moment, she suddenly stops.

"What's wrong, Saber?"

The blonde knight shook her head as she looked back at her Master with a reassurance.

"Nothing... I just thought I saw a katana but I can't find it anywhere."

"Huh?" The pinkette tilted his head in confusion but Saber continued once more.

"The mountain gate is not guarded. Let us go inside the temple." She rushed ahead of him in which he followed suit as they try to make their way over to the temple itself

..

..

After a few minutes, they made their way to the main entrance. The temple before them lies ahead though there's something off. The place was eerily quiet and there aren't signs of any Master of Servant trying to confront them this far.

The darkness was thick that even though the moon shines brightly overhead, the light doesn't seem to light the area as it used to be back at the front gate. Natsu tried to look up but the moon isn't obscured or anything.

In fact, the sky is clear.

"Saber..." Natsu looked at her in anticipation.

"Yes. Something's wrong. No one would let us come this far without offering resistance. The place it too quiet." The blonde Servant nodded in caution as she looked at the temple before them.

"Let's go inside. The temple has only a few people living inside it. It can't be this quiet. I just hope that they're okay."

And with that, the two sprinted together with their eyes focused on the dark temple.

They made it inside the temple and eventually found everyone sleeping, however, they don't sleep the way humans are.

They don't move an inch from their position as if they were frozen solid. They don't even react one bit even if they touched them. If Natsu was in the mood for a joke, he would've punched someone just to see if they're not faking it.

But only one thing's for certain about their conditions.

They were all weakened just like what happened back at the students when Shinji activated that boundary field.

Issei was one of them although he can't do anything about it unless they take out the Servant responsible for it.

Ignoring the sleeping people, they proceeded on the wooden hallway. Silence reigned heavily on the surrounding atmosphere as Saber and Natsu cautiously wandered at the empty temple.

It was then Saber felt a presence.

"Over there, Natsu." She whispered to which he nodded as they make their way towards the main building.

..

..

However, as soon as they crossed the hallway, they saw a spray of red blood spread across the floor. Natsu and Saber widened their eyes in surprise as their eyes landed on a body laid at the center of it.

The man is pierced at the chest. It was a lethal strike. No one could've survived longer because the heart was struck. Natsu held it all in as he focused on the other figure who lay standing before the corpse with a horrified expression on her face as her dark clothes were also dyed in red.

Judging from her clothes apart from the monks, she must be the Servant and that the man before her was her Master. However, his attention was focused on the dagger held in her hand. For some reason, he could feel some powerful magic embedded to it.

"Kuzuki...sensei," Natsu mumbled the name of the victim while at the same time, catching the Servant's attention.

"Caster...!" Saber calls out in alarm.

"Saber..." The one called caster replies back with an absent-minded expression.

"... I see. You must have come here to finish me off. I don't know whose plot is this, but he is quite thorough."

"Silence! I do not want anything from a person who betrays her master. Regret your actions and take your punishment, Caster!" Saber was about to attack but Natsu held her back.

"Wait, Saber!"

"Natsu...!? Why are you stopping me? This is our best chance to defeat Caster!" She reasoned.

"I know... Just don't go near that dagger. That thing can break contracts. It might even cut the bond between a Servant and a Master."

Saber drew a surprised look but immediately narrowed her eyes in caution towards her enemy once again.

"Then, Caster killed her own master?"

"I don't know but there's something wrong about what she just said to us earlier."

"What do you mean, Natsu?"

Ignoring her bewilderment, Natsu stepped forward to confront the Servant with a curious expression.

"What do you mean someone's plot? Did someone set you up?" He asked, hoping for an answer from her but she stayed silent.

"Natsu, this is no time for any questions. She clearly killed her master for her own gains." As soon as she heard that, Caster slightly chuckled at her response.

"Killed my master? I killed Souichirou-sama?" Her laugh instantly faded in despair as she looked at her blood-soaked hands in horror.

"...That's right. Maybe I should've done that in the first place if this was going to happen." She mumbled silently to herself.

"Enough of you nonsense! Face your punishment, Caster!" Saber raises her sword without hesitation and tries to approach her until-

..

..

"WATCH OUT!"

In an instant, Natsu lunged towards Caster and tackled her out of the way as a large claw smashed through the ceiling and crashed the wooden floor where she was supposed to be. A cloud of dust kicked up as a result as Saber leaped away but not long before she looked over to the pinkette who somehow came out unharmed along with Caster who was surprised at his actions.

"Wha-"

"Here it comes!" Natsu shouted before another claw pounces through the wooden ceiling and tried to crush Saber as well but she deflects it with her invisible sword.

"Master, we should get out of here!" She called out to which he nodded before carrying right in his arms and sprinted away outside.

"Complain later! We're getting out of here!" He replied without offering her any chance to speak as the both ran out of the temple to avoid the unknown beast from destroying the section where the rest of the people are sleeping.

Conveniently, the large ominous creature also followed their figures as they flee from the other side.

As soon as they walked outside the temple, their eyes widened in disbelief. Not because of its size, but rather its appearance. Dark scales are seen from all over its huge body, darker than the night itself. Four huge limbs stomped ferociously at the ground with razor sharp claws that could cut almost anything just by a small swing.

A large neck hovered above its giant body before them. Its head obscured the moonlight from the sky, only to reflect its two red orbs staring down at them with anger.

Saber and Caster could feel its intense power and they could only watch in fear as the monster growled menacingly to them.

"W-What is that?" Saber asked.

"This kind of summon... I-It's not like I've ever seen before. Just who–" Even Caster was stuttering in disbelief at such as creature before her.

"Dragon!" Saber realized.

..

..

..

Far away from the temple, a man in black stands solely at the distance as he looked at the swirling dark skies hovering above Ryudou Temple after the wake of his own Servant.

A faint smile is seen on his hidden face. It was ominous and clearly malevolent. If anyone had to react to such an event towards the temple, he would only give a dark smile.

 **"Hmm... It seems like it disobeyed me. I guess, his hatred far surpasses common sense."** He spoke as if he was disappointed before turning his gaze away from the scene and left.

 **"Destroyer… Now let's see if you can do anything against it, Natsu. If not, I'll gladly give you more despair."** His voice shakes the very atmosphere around him before disappearing from existence.

The night had suddenly turned into a battle as Natsu faces against an unknown enemy.

* * *

 **A/N: And stop! That's the chapter for you guys. Hope ya like it. And also the OC character has finally made its appearance but its identity are yet to be revealed until the later chapters. It's not human and it's not the dragon that you'd expect from FT verse but a different one.**

 **As you can see, there's an additional Servant in the mix which will serve as a plot-changer for the story. Of course, I still have plans for Illya and Archer as well concerning their connection to Natsu but it will take a while to get there. Sakura and Rin will also play their roles but I'd like to take it slow and wait for a bit to rethink again my plots on how I would go from now on.**

 **Anyways, leave a comment and tell me what you think of the chapter. Also, shout out thanks to ortizale317. He's the one who proposed the OC character in my story so the ownership stays with him, I'm just borrowing it and tweaking it to fit into the story.**

 **I'll see you guys in the next chapter.**

 **\- wiErD SpeCtrumz blacking out… … …**


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